The Rise of Transdiagnostic Processes

The Rise of Transdiagnostic Processes

February 29, 2020March 2, 2020CBC

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and the Third Wave Syndrome-based treatments have dominated the evidence-based landscape for almost 50 years. This syndrome approach has served well to increase diagnostic reliability and develop scientific treatment packages. However, the age of “which evidence-based package is the best?” is coming to an end. The question moving forward is “which shared mechanisms across disorders and treatments should be targeted”? This “transdiagnostic” or “third wave” approach has been welcomed by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), signaling process-based therapy (PBT) as the future of evidence based-practice. Targeting shared processes such as “psychological flexibility”, which cut across syndromes, will simplify complex interventions, better treat comorbid presentations… Read More

The EMDR and Behavior Therapy Controversy

February 16, 2020February 24, 2020CBC

EMDR vs Behavior Therapy Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, or EMDR, is a popular PTSD treatment for patients and clinicians alike. While it has gained in popularity over the years, it has also been mired in controversy. Proponents of EMDR maintain that the treatment more effectively reprocesses trauma than exposure therapy, and does so at a faster rate. CBT and behavioral practitioners have questioned whether the mechanisms of action underlying EMDR are simply exposure-based and if bilateral stimulation (i.e. eye movements) is a superfluous addition. State of the Evidence Previous meta-analyses and dismantling studies appear to support this analysis, indicating that eye movements and other bilateral stimulation do not add… Read More

Behavioral Innovations in PTSD and Trauma Therapy

February 16, 2020February 17, 2020CBC

Prolonged Exposure Therapy One of the most well established and highly effective treatments for PTSD is prolonged exposure therapy. However, while this treatment has demonstrated much success over the years, focusing on habituation as the primary mechanisms of change has been called into question. The inhibitory learning model challenges outdated approaches and aligns with advances in neuroscience. Inhibitory Learning Model: Advances in CBT According to the inhibitory learning model, when exposure therapy results in extinction, information in the brain is not rewritten. Instead, new learning simply inhibits older excititory learning. The important take-home is that information is never unlearned. It just becomes inhibited. This means that depending on context and… Read More

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for Chronic Pain

February 13, 2020February 16, 2020CBC

ACT and CBT are both empirically supported treatments for chronic pain management. ACT helps those with chronic pain identify what they value in life and how to move towards those meaningful experiences with self-kindness. CBT helps those with chronic pain reduce maladaptive ways of thinking about pain, while testing strongly held pain beliefs. Please click on the article below to learn more about how ACT and CBT approaches may help your physical and emotional pain. ACT, CBT and Chronic Pain Management Article

Book Of Abstracts

February 10, 2020February 10, 2020CBC

Please clickthe link below to see Dr. Berman’s published abstract ” The Choice Point Model of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy in an Inpatient Substance Use Disorder Setting: A Pilot Study” in the AMERSA Book of Abstracts. Book of Abstracts

ACT for Substance Use Disorders

February 6, 2020February 10, 2020CBC

Dr. Berman’s research abstract on the benefits of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Substance Use Disorders was recently published in the Substance Abuse Journal. Please click on the link below, then download “Supplemental Materials” to view Dr. Berman’s research in the “Book of abstracts”, page 41. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Substance Use Disorders

Innovations in Relapse Prevention

February 4, 2020February 4, 2020CBC

Dr. Berman will be presenting his research at the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) conference in April. Please click on the link below to learn more about Dr. Berman’s abstract and research team. Transdiagnostic and Self-Compassionate Innovations in Relapse Prevention

Dr. Berman’s Newest Research

January 25, 2020January 25, 2020CBC

Dr. Berman and his team have been accepted to present research on the impact of transdiagnostic approaches on treatment adherence at the American Psychological Association (APA) 2020 Convention. Stay tuned for updates and information.

Dr. Berman Presents Research

December 3, 2019February 4, 2020CBC

For the past 4 years, Dr. Berman has been researching the use of transdiagnostic interventions with substance use disorders. Dr. Berman was honored to present his research at The Association for Multidisciplinary Education and Research in Substance use and Addiction poster session.

Mindfulness Works!

June 18, 2019June 18, 2019CBC

Mindfulness meditation has gone mainstream, and for good reason. It really works! But what does that mean… it works? Is it a way to shut off the brain or numb unwanted emotions? Not exactly. Mindfulness is about becoming an observe of thoughts in order to reduce the exhausting struggle with them. Not only is the struggle to get rid of our internal experiences tiring, but it also keeps us stuck internally fighting rather than living living. As Mika Brzezinski from MSNBC would say, it helps to “recalibrate”, change our relationship with ourselves and become less reactive. One of the most powerful ingredients of mindfulness is acceptance. The act of being… Read More