Ark Of Little Cottonwood To Host Emotional Health Author And TV Personality John Bradshaw

Pulitzer Prize and Emmy-nominated author to speak at company's Draper facility April 22 and 23, 2011.

Salt Lake City-Pulitzer Prize and Emmy nominee, John Bradshaw, will be conducting workshops on emotional health April 22 and 23 at The Ark of Little Cottonwood's Outpatient Facility in Draper (272 E. 1200 S., Draper). Friday's workshop designed for mental health professionals and the public, "How Effective Therapy Molds Moral Intelligence," will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday's workshop for Ark clients and their families and approved individuals, "Healing the Inner Child," will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Cost to attend the Friday workshop is $100 (although a $70 fee is available to mental health professionals who attend the Generations conference April 20 and 21 at the Salt Palace-this national conference is targeted specifically toward mental health and substance abuse professionals). Continuing Education Unit (CEU) credits are available to mental health professionals who attend the Friday workshop. To register for the workshop, call The Ark of Little Cottonwood at (801)733-0200 and ask for Cathy, or visit the website, thearkrecovery.com. The Saturday workshop is free for Ark clients and their families. Other individuals may attend the Saturday workshop for $100, and these attendees must be pre-approved by The Ark.

In 1999, Bradshaw was honored by a group of his peers and named as one of the most influential writers on emotional health in the 20th century. Others included in the list included Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung, Joseph Campbell and Erich Fromm. Over the past 35 years, he has appeared on "Oprah," "Geraldo," "Sally," "Dr. Ruth," "Politically Incorrect," "Good Morning America," "CNN News," CNN-Talk Back Live," the BBC and on Sirius Radio. He has also been featured or interviewed by such publications as Newsweek, Rolling Stone, People, the Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Boston Globe, San Francisco Chronicle and the Portland Oregonian, among others.

Bradshaw was born into a troubled family in 1933. He was abandoned by his alcoholic father at a young age. As a young man, he studied for the Roman Catholic priesthood at a Basilian seminary, where he remained for 9 ½ years, leaving just a few days prior to being ordained. During that time, he earned a bachelor's and master's degrees in psychology, philosophy and theology from St. Michael's College at the University of Toronto, graduating magna cum laude. He continued his post-graduate studies at Rice University and earned a master's of spiritual psychology at the University of Santa Monica.

During his years of study, Bradshaw developed a drinking problem. In December 1965, he committed himself to Austin State Hospital for the treatment of his dependency on alcohol. After being in the hospital for six days, he signed himself out of the hospital and entered an alcohol recovery program. Shortly thereafter, he began to lecture at a local church. This helped launch Bradshaw's career as a counselor, teacher, public speaker and corporate consultant.

The Ark of Little Cottonwood is an inpatient facility that treats individuals for a variety of mental health issues including anxiety, depression, mood and personality disorders, drug and alcohol dependency, eating disorders and addictive behavior (for a range of topics that includes gambling, sex, pornography and even shopping).The Ark of Little Cottonwood was founded by Gloria Boberg in 1999. In addition to The Ark of Little Cottonwood, Boberg's other facilities include The Ark of St. George Outpatient Clinic (1070 W. 1600 S., Suite 102 in St. George), The Ark of Eagle Mountain's Executive Manor (2590 Prairie View Dr. in Eagle Mountain) and The Ark Intensive Outpatient Clinic (272 E. 12200 S. in Draper).