Dialectic Behavior Therapy: A Day of Skills Training
In recent years Dialectic Behavior Therapy (DBT) skills training, a core component of this evidence-based therapy, has been studied and found to be effective in strategically targeting a broad array of symptoms, and problem behaviors. This holds true when skills training is provided as part of comprehensive DBT and as a stand-alone therapy. The broad range of skills covered and taught, which include Zen-based mindfulness, emotion regulation, distress tolerance/crisis survival skills, and interpersonal effectiveness help clients and clinicians develop targeted strategies to move forward in the direction of the client’s goals and aspirations. Certain skills on their own, such as mindfulness training, are now considered evidence-based practices for targeting a broad range of disorders and symptoms.
This experiential, full-day training focuses on the four core skills modules in Dialectic Behavior Therapy in combination with the important cognitive behavioral therapist skills of behavioral chain analysis and “missing links” analysis. The day is designed to help clinician’s thoroughly analyze: problem behaviors, emotional dysregulation, and patterns of thought distortion, and then strategically assist clients in developing the skills they need to more effectively handle these in the future. While ideal for clinicians wishing to enhance their DBT skill set, this training is also designed for non-DBT clinicians with an interest in expanding their therapeutic toolkit A basic understanding of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) principals is desirable, as these will be covered, but only briefly.
This training is open to DMHAS employees and those who work for DMHAS-funded agencies. For further information, or to register, visit the DMHAS Office of Workforce Development Website https://portal.ct.gov/DMHAS/Divisions/Office%20of%20Workforce%20Development/Office%20of%20Workforce%20Development
Good Night: The Science of Sleep with Implications for Wellness and Disease
Have you ever wondered why you spend a third of your life unconscious and vulnerable? Or considered how wonderful it might be to have an extra eight hours a day to be productive or to make it to level 2000 on Candy Crush? Truth is you don’t have a choice. Everything sleeps, from single cell organisms like the amoeba you pulled from a pond and watched under a microscope in High School biology to the fuzz-ball rescue puppy you got on your eighth birthday. It’s a biologic imperative, like breathing, eating, and if a species is to continue, sex.
So, what’s the harm in missing a few hours, as most Americans do? Sleep research in the past two decades answers this with a resounding everything. Inadequate sleep correlates with increased mortality from all causes. The links are fascinating and disturbing and encompass everything from Alzheimer’s, heart attacks, stroke, obesity, and type II diabetes to depression, anxiety disorders, substance-use disorders, schizophrenia, and even cancer.
Join Dr. Atkins for a fascinating full-day overview of the evidence and best-practice strategies, which include cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) and other non-pharmacologic strategies, to improve sleep and overall health and wellness for you and your clients.