What is Collaborative Care Skills Workshop (CCSW)?
What is Collaborative Care Skills Workshop (CCSW)? A Guide to Empowering Carers of Loved Ones with Eating Disorders
If you’re supporting a loved one with an eating disorder, it can often feel overwhelming and confusing. You might wonder if you’re doing the right thing or if there’s anything more you can do to help. The Collaborative Care Skills Workshop (CCSW), developed by Dr. Janet Treasure and her team, is designed to empower carers like you. It offers practical tools and strategies to support your loved one effectively while looking after your well-being.
In this post, I’ll explain the CCSW, its main components, and how it uses animal metaphors to help you understand and adapt your caring style.
What is the Collaborative Care Skills Workshop?
CCSW is an evidence-based program developed to give carers the skills and knowledge needed to support loved ones with eating disorders. It combines cognitive-behavioural principles and motivational interviewing techniques to help you engage with your loved one compassionately and non-confrontationally. It’s all about building a toolkit to manage challenging situations, deepen your understanding of eating disorders, and create a positive environment that promotes recovery.
Key Components of CCSW
The workshop focuses on several core areas to help you develop a balanced and effective approach as a carer. Here are the main components:
1. Reflecting on Your Caring Style Through Animal Metaphors
One of the most valuable aspects of CCSW is its use of animal metaphors to help you understand your own caring style. These metaphors provide a way to identify your natural tendencies and behaviours, showing what may be helping or hindering your loved one’s recovery. Recognising these patterns allows you to adjust your approach for the best outcomes. The key animal metaphors include:
• The Kangaroo: This style is protective and nurturing. As a Kangaroo carer, you may try to shield your loved one from distress or triggers by controlling the environment. While this comes from a place of love, it can lead to dependence and hinder their development of independence, which is crucial for recovery.
• The Rhino: If you relate to the Rhino, you might use a confrontational or forceful approach, believing that pushing your loved one will motivate them. However, this often leads to conflict and resistance, worsening the situation and making it harder for them to engage in treatment.
• The Dolphin: The Dolphin represents the ideal caring style. Dolphins are calm, supportive, and collaborative. As a Dolphin, you gently encourage your loved one, maintaining a supportive presence. This approach empowers your loved one to take responsibility for their recovery while feeling fully supported.
• The Jellyfish: Jellyfish carers are emotionally reactive. You might feel overwhelmed by your loved one’s distress, making it hard to offer consistent support. While your care is genuine, emotional reactivity can create confusion or instability in the support environment.
• The Ostrich: If you see yourself as an Ostrich, you may avoid confronting the reality of the eating disorder, hoping it will resolve on its own. This can delay the intervention your loved one may need, preventing timely access to help.
• The St Bernard: St Bernard carers are nurturing and self-sacrificing. You might put your loved one’s needs above your own, providing a lot of support but risking burnout. This can create an unsustainable situation where your own well-being is compromised.
• The Terrier: Terrier carers are persistent and vigilant, closely monitoring their loved one’s behaviour and food intake. While this attention comes from concern, it can feel intrusive and increase stress or resistance in your loved one.
CCSW encourages you to recognise these styles and make adjustments, aiming to adopt the Dolphin and St Bernard approach—supportive, balanced, and empowering.
2. Using Motivational Interviewing Techniques
A major part of CCSW is learning motivational interviewing (MI) skills. MI helps you engage with your loved one in a non-judgemental way, allowing them to explore their own motivations for change. CCSW teaches you how to:
• Ask open-ended questions that encourage your loved one to express their thoughts and feelings.
• Practise reflective listening, showing empathy and understanding to build trust.
• Use affirmations to validate their efforts and reinforce positive behaviours.
These skills create a supportive and safe space, reducing resistance and encouraging open, meaningful conversations.
3. Understanding the Eating Disorder Cycle
CCSW also provides education about the eating disorder cycle, covering the physical, emotional, and cognitive factors involved. By understanding this cycle, you can better recognise your loved one’s triggers and patterns. This insight helps you respond with empathy rather than frustration, realising that their behaviours are not about defiance but coping mechanisms.
4. Developing Problem-Solving Skills
The workshop equips you with practical problem-solving skills to use in challenging situations. You learn a structured approach to:
• Identify the Problem: Define the issue clearly without placing blame.
• Explore Possible Solutions: Brainstorm a range of options to consider.
• Choose and Implement a Solution: Select the best approach and put it into action.
• Review the Outcome: Reflect on what worked and what didn’t, adjusting as needed.
This framework gives you a practical way to respond when you feel stuck or uncertain about how to proceed.
5. Managing Emotions and Practising Self-Care
CCSW acknowledges the emotional toll that caring for someone with an eating disorder can take. It emphasises the importance of self-care for carers like you, offering strategies to manage emotions such as guilt, fear, and frustration. Techniques like mindfulness and breathing exercises help you regulate your own emotional responses, ensuring you stay calm and present when your loved one needs you most.
Learning these self-care practices is essential—not just for your own well-being, but also to ensure you can provide the consistent and effective support your loved one needs. CCSW reminds us that you can’t pour from an empty cup; looking after yourself is key.
How the CCSW Empowers Carers
CCSW empowers carers by providing practical skills, emotional support, and a deeper understanding of eating disorders. Rather than feeling powerless, you gain confidence and competence as you build a toolkit that helps you navigate the challenges of supporting your loved one.
For me, CCSW was transformative. It helped me understand my own caring style and taught me how to adapt to become more effective. The skills I learned improved my communication with my loved one and gave me confidence to handle difficult situations calmly and empathetically. Importantly, it also reminded me to prioritise my well-being, allowing me to be a stable and supportive presence.
Conclusion
The Collaborative Care Skills Workshop is a valuable resource for any carer supporting a loved one with an eating disorder. It offers you the knowledge, skills, and emotional support you need to be an effective ally in their recovery. If you’re feeling overwhelmed or unsure how best to support your loved one, CCSW provides a structured, evidence-based approach to make a real difference.
If you have the opportunity, I highly recommend engaging with CCSW. It’s an investment in your well-being and in your loved one's recovery journey, equipping you with the tools to navigate this challenging path with confidence, empathy, and resilience.