**This 6 CE webinar fulfills your Diagnosis requirement for CE’s**

Join Dr. Jennifer Sweeton, a renowned psychologist, neuroscientist, and trauma expert, for an exploration of Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (C-PTSD) and its nuanced characteristics. This course equips mental health professionals with the tools to accurately differentiate C-PTSD from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), and Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), leveraging the latest neuroscience and evidence-based frameworks. Dr. Sweeton addresses the challenges of assessing prolonged trauma’s impact, empowering clinicians to enhance diagnostic precision and tailor effective interventions. Ideal for psychologists, counselors, and social workers, this course bridges research and practice to improve client outcomes in trauma-informed care.

Whether you work in private practice, a clinical setting, or the forensic arena, accurately identifying Complex PTSD is critical to effective treatment. This course offers practical guidance for making nuanced diagnostic distinctions, using advanced case examples and hands-on tools. You’ll leave better equipped to recognize subtle symptom patterns and confidently apply targeted interventions rooted in current science.

Attendance and Location Details

Date and Time

**This is a 6-CE online seminar delivered virtually in real-time via an industry-standard webinar platform**

Friday, April 10, 2026, 9:00 am – 4:30 pm CST / 10:00am – 5:30pm EST / 7:00am – 2:30pm PST

*Live Webinar Attendees: Zoom link and course materials will be made available to you 24-48 hours prior to event date

Agenda: 

9:00 AM – 9:15 AM | Welcome and Course Orientation

• • Instructor introduction
  • Learning objectives overview
  • Brief pre-training poll or reflection

9:15 AM – 10:15 AM | Session 1: Defining Complex PTSD

• • Core diagnostic criteria (ICD-11 vs. DSM-5-TR)
  • Key differences from PTSD, BPD, and MDD
  • Discussion: overlapping symptoms and misdiagnosis risks

10:15 AM – 10:30 AM | Morning Break

10:30 AM – 11:30 AM | Session 2: The Neurobiology of C-PTSD

• • Amygdala, prefrontal cortex, and hippocampus
  • Impacts of prolonged trauma on brain functioning
  • Neurobiological comparisons with PTSD, BPD, and MDD

11:30 AM – 12:00 PM | Session 3: Assessment in Clinical Settings

• • Best-practice screening and diagnostic tools
  • Case vignette: differential diagnosis
  • Discussion: reducing bias and improving clarity

12:00 PM – 1:00 PM | Lunch Break

1:00 PM – 2:00 PM | Session 4: Trauma-Informed Interventions for C-PTSD

• • Sequencing treatment: stabilization, processing, integration
  • Somatic, cognitive, and neuro-informed approaches
  • Brief skills practice or demonstration

2:00 PM – 2:15 PM | Afternoon Break

2:15 PM – 3:15 PM | Session 5: Evidence-Based Therapies for C-PTSD

• • Overview of two key modalities (e.g., EMDR, CPT, NARM)
  • Tailoring approaches based on clinical presentation
  • Integration into individual and group therapy contexts

3:15 PM – 4:00 PM | Session 6: Avoiding Misdiagnosis in Complex Cases

• • Forensic and ethical considerations
  • Strategies for accurate documentation and case presentation
  • Advanced case examples and discussion

4:00 PM – 4:30 PM | Wrap-Up and Q&A

• • Review of key takeaways
  • Final Q&A with Dr. Sweeton
  • CE instructions and resources for further study

Objectives:

This training will provide participants clinical knowledge and tools to:

a). After completing this training, participants will be able to define Complex PTSD, distinguishing it from PTSD, BPD, and MDD based on DSM-5-TR and ICD-11 frameworks.

b). After completing this training, participants will be able to analyze the neurobiological underpinnings of C-PTSD, including dysregulation in the amygdala and prefrontal cortex.

c). After completing this training, participants will be able to apply evidence-based assessment tools to differentiate C-PTSD symptoms from overlapping disorders in clinical settings.

d). After completing this training, participants will be able to name and practice trauma-informed intervention strategies tailored to C-PTSD, integrating somatic, cognitive, and neuroscientific approaches.

e). After completing this training, participants will be able to state at least one strategy to avoid misdiagnoses in forensic and clinical contexts.

f). After completing this training, participants will be able to describe at least two evidence-based therapies that may be helpful to clients with C-PTSD.

Target Audience:

The target audience for this event includes psychologists, social workers, counselors, MFT’s, and other clinical mental health professionals.

Instructional Level: Intermediate

Instructor(s): Jennifer Sweeton, PsyD, MS, MA

Material Author(s): Jennifer Sweeton, PsyD, MS, MA

Originally trained as a neuroscientist, Dr. Jennifer Sweeton is a clinical and forensic psychologist, Amazon #1 best-selling author, and internationally-recognized expert on trauma, anxiety, and the neuroscience of mental health. She is the author of the book, Trauma Treatment Toolbox, published by PESI Publishing & Media. Dr. Sweeton completed her doctoral training at the Stanford University School of Medicine, the Pacific Graduate School of Psychology, and the National Center for PTSD. Additionally, she holds a master’s degree in affective neuroscience from Stanford University, and studied behavioral genetics at Harvard University. Dr. Sweeton resides in the greater Kansas City area, where she owns a group private practice, Kansas City Mental Health Associates, and co-owns Mind Works Professional Education, Inc., a continuing education company. She holds an adjunct faculty appointment at the University of Kansas School of Medicine, and is a former President of the Greater Kansas City Psychological Association. Dr. Sweeton offers clinical and forensic psychological services, and is a sought-after trauma and neuroscience expert who has trained more than 15,000 mental health professionals in all 50 US states and over 20 countries.

For additional information about this course, the instructors, or the material authors, please contact Content Assistance at content@onlinececredits.com.

Course Materials & Delivery Method:

• Course Materials (including the link to view the scheduled live webinar) are made available to all registered attendees 24-48 hours before the event start time. 
• This training is interactive and provides opportunities to ask direct questions to the trainer as well as request immediate help from staff if needed. The attendee will view the presentation in real-time from their connected device via an industry-standard internet webinar platform.

CE Approvals:

Online CE Credits has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 6795. Programs that do not quality for NBCC credit are clearly identified. Online CE Credits is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.

Mind Works Professional Education, Inc. DBA Online CE Credits, #1974, is approved as an ACE provider to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. ACE provider approval period: July 23, 2024 – July 23, 2025. Social workers completing this course receive 6 clinical continuing education credits.

Other Helpful Information:

• Registration Deadline – Please register at any time prior to the advertised start time of this live webinar training.
• Refund & Cancellation Policy – You may review this policy at any time by clicking here.
• Accessibility Accommodations – If you require a reasonable accommodation for any reason, please email your request to cc@onlinececredits.com
• Course Completion Requirements – Complete the code word attendance quiz by 1.) selecting the correct beginning and/or ending code words, 2.) inputting actual time signed in and time signed out, and 3.) signing your name attesting to your full attendance. Then, complete the course evaluation.
• Posttest Requirements (***not applicable for most live webinars) – You must answer 80% or more of the Quiz questions correctly to pass. If you fail to pass the first time, you may attempt the quiz again until you are able to pass with a score of 80% or better. Quizzes are graded instantly and automatically by the learning management system once your attempt is submitted.
• Certificate of Completion – Certificates of completion are automatically generated – downloadable from your Dashboard and emailed to you – once you complete the code word attendance quiz and the course evaluation. Please complete these items to receive your certificate immediately after the live webinar training is concluded.
• Live Webinar Registration – Please select the proper admission ticket in the banner at the top of this page, and follow the prompts. You will be asked either to login with your existing account (if you have learned with us before) or to establish a new user account during the registration process if this is your first training with us.
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