Prometheum Institute was spawned in recognition of Prometheus, the Greek god of wisdom who stole fire from the heavens and taught man to use it.  We see fire as enlightenment.  It was registered as a corporation in Ontario on January 6, 2004 as the business 2038626 Ontario Limited.

The business name, Prometheum Institute was registered with The Department of Colleges and Universities of Ontario and was given as a Master Licence in September 2011.  Under this licence, Prometheum Institute is allowed to provide mental health education to clients in three formats:

1. Counselling services in a private setting
2. Self-directed learning material in the form of written and audiovisual formats
3. Training and supervising providers to use the Cognitive Empowerment approach for assessment, analysis, and therapeutic intervention.

Our management model is not medical.  It is a psycho/socio/spiritual model based on an understanding that human function is driven by two levels of control. One is the paleo-mammalian brain or the limbic system that, through a sophisticated series of chemical responses to sensory input, initiates action based on the fight/flight responses discovered by Walter Cannon in 1903.  The other is the supra-cerebral cognitive function that is driven by knowledge, understanding, and creative thinking.  This, however, is rudimentary at birth but is initialized and developed through guided stimulation in the formative years. Guided stimulation requires a balanced exposure to information, the discipline to process and use that information, and the encouragement to appreciate the value of this ability.

Our first consideration is that, without balanced exposure or if balanced exposure is insufficient, cognitive function may not be strong enough to always stay in control allowing the fallback to the automatic responses of the paleo-mammalian brain – too readily, too often, or too intensely – leading to reactive rather than proactive management, a fertile ground for crisis generation.  So, even the most educated person in one field may be insufficient in another and may show intelligence in the first but reactive behaviour in the second.

Our second consideration is that our life-challenges come from three areas of invisible but perpetual activity – the physical, biological, and social realities – that function independent of our presence but interact with it. Thus, a person may also be cognitively and purposefully driven in one reality but may fall back to the limbic system when confronted by challenges from the other two.

Our third consideration is that the paleo-mammalian response is necessary, not bad.  It is the back-up when cognitive function is insufficiently able. Thus, suppressing it or punishing it is ineffective since its removal only reveals the insufficiency it is meant to backup.  It is far more productive and effective to fill the holes or build the depth of cognitive capability. Then, the use of reactive responses will be reduced by attrition.

Thus, our presentation of personal management development in the six modules allows us to help you ‘see’ what may have been lacking in YOUR cognitive preparation and help you work on building that or filling the holes left during your development.  We see that much of unhealthy behaviour as the adult is caused by the reliance on the paleo-mammalian brain too often, too easily, and too intensely, and that this is driven, not by disease or immorality, but by the inability of the supra-cerebral intellect to take over in times of crisis. Our focus, therefore, is on building or elevating the cognitive function as the true strength of the person.  That gives true self-worth because it is personal, indestructible, and naturally progressive.