Monica Urru
Neurophysiology of adaptation
Integrating neurophysiology of adaptation and ISTDP theory
About this training
The training is an advanced introduction to integrating ISTDP theory with the latest discoveries in the field of neuroadaptation. Its aim is to build a bridge between different therapeutic models. The training describes how phenomena observed in the psychotherapy consulting room, such as anxiety, character defences or deep emotional experiences, are directly reflected in biological processes. It breaks with the traditional mind-body dualism, presenting the organism as an integrated electrical field that influences mental processes and whose signals one can learn to read in therapy.
The training focuses on several key issues connected with the mechanisms of health and illness and with the therapeutic process. It begins with the concept of allostasis, which describes how the brain, striving to maintain stability through change, predicts future events on the basis of past experience. It also addresses the overloading of this mechanism, the so-called allostatic overload, which can lead to the development of chronic diseases. Another important issue is the biological basis of conflict and somatization. The training shows how unresolved, unconscious psychological conflicts can trigger chronic inflammatory states in the body, and how prolonged stress or trauma increases the risk of autoimmune diseases, fibromyalgia and even cancer. The training also introduces the concept of the electrobiome, which explains why the body’s electrical signals are crucial to understanding the therapeutic process.
Participants also learn about the neuroscientific mechanisms of change, becoming familiar with the biological processes that take place in the body during the patient’s deep emotional experiences (the so-called portrayal). The training explains why therapy can provoke physiological reactions such as fever, fatigue or swelling, and how these can be interpreted as a key, restorative inflammatory process in the body. Another important element is the practical application of this knowledge: the training is based on the analysis of video recordings of therapy sessions, including cases of patients with complex somatization, which makes it possible to observe how the concepts discussed are implemented in clinical practice in order to achieve lasting change.
This intensive, substantive training integrates the ISTDP approach with research on allostasis, neuroendocrinology and the inflammatory response. It thereby makes possible a deeper understanding of both the mental and the physical health of the patient.
What will you learn?
- The concept of allostasis and human adaptation
- Unloading anxiety and stress adaptive behavior
- Chronic inflammation and depression
- Integration of the principles of the Intensive Short-Term Dynamic Psychotherapy stream with the language of neuroscience
What will you receive?
- 01Extended training video about subject of neurophysiology of adaptation.
- 02The presentation used in the training video with downloadable and viewable content
A fragment of this training
A short excerpt from the recording itself. It is here so you can see how the material is taught, and what to expect, before you decide.
Your teacher
Monica Urru
MD, ISTDP supervisor and teacher
Dr. Monica Urru, MD, is based in Rome and has been active in the ISTDP community for over twenty years. She trained in Intensive Short-Term Dynamic Psychotherapy with Patricia Coughlin (Philadelphia, 2002-2006) and completed a further core training with Jon Frederickson and Josette ten Have de Labije (2008-2011), followed by a training of trainers for teachers and supervisors, led by Jon Frederickson, in Norway (2010). Today she works as a supervisor and runs ISTDP core groups in Rome, teaching how to work with the neurobiological underpinnings of trauma treatment. She has led an advanced ISTDP group in Italy for the past twelve years and a further advanced group in Poland since 2019. Alongside ISTDP, she has practised REAC neurobiological modulation continuously since 2008, in collaboration with Dr. Salvatore Rinaldi at the Rinaldi-Fontani Institute in Florence, integrating the two approaches across a wide range of diagnoses. Since 2026 she has been part of Inside BlueZone, the REAC® longevity programme developed by the Rinaldi Fontani Institute, which recreates Blue Zone conditions in the body to counteract inflammaging and cellular senescence. She also contributes to the epistemological framework of the Ordinative Sciences Foundation, translating clinical processes into structured models of coherence and regulation. She has presented at psychotherapy conferences in Italy, Poland, Denmark, Sweden, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Lebanon, and has co-taught with Jon Frederickson across Europe from 2008 to the present, including summer schools in Italy (2012, 2014) and France (2024). She is the author of Star Seeker, based on specific studies on autism, and of We Were Born Searching (2026), and co-author with Jon Frederickson of Clinical Thinking in Medicine (Elsevier, forthcoming) and Psychoneurophysiopathology of Adaptation: A New Paradigm (forthcoming in 2027).
Why train with us?
- Experienced ISTDP teachersOur teachers are practitioners with many years of experience.
- Practical methods for immediate useAfter reviewing the material, you will return to your practice with ready-to-use ways of carrying out more effective interventions with patients.
- Knowledge that stays with youYou can replay our online courses whenever you want and as many times as you need. After purchase, you receive unlimited access, which allows you to consolidate the knowledge you have acquired effectively.
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Neurophysiology of adaptation
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