CBT can reduce risk of Perinatal Depression

March 10th, 2019jm@ownhope.org0 Comments

If you have a history or family history of depression and are pregnant please let your healthcare team know. Evidence based treatments prior to delivering your child can significantly reduce your risk of perinatal depression. The Task Force reviewed 50 studies which examined a variety of different treatments including counselling, physical activity, education, and medication such as antidepressants and omega-3 fatty acids. They determined there was convincing evidence that counseling interventions such as cognitive behavioral therapy and interpersonal therapy were effective in preventing perinatal depression.In fact, both types of therapy reduced the risk of depression by 39 percent. Link

Make Decisions Like a Ninja

September 17th, 2018jm@ownhope.org0 Comments

Decision making can be difficult when we’re struggling with a strong emotion and can be problematic when we’re coping with depression and anxiety. Pros and Cons is a flexible, easy to use and effective CBT skill that can improve our decision-making skills and increase confidence when making decisions. Pros and Cons can be helpful in the following areas: 1. Distress Tolerance: Comparing the Maladaptive coping mechanism to the Adaptive Coping Mechanism 2. Life Skills (exercise, medication compliance, eating well): Comparing, for example, Working Out v. Netflix. 3. Social Anxiety: Comparing Avoiding a Social Event v. Attending 4. Depression: Getting out of …

Challenging Irrational Beliefs with the Continuum Technique

August 30th, 2018jm@ownhope.org0 Comments

The Continuum Technique is a tool used in CBT to help people challenge irrational beliefs about themselves or the world around them. It’s a pretty simple tool that acts as a contrast to harmful beliefs that we simply accept as true or allow to remain unchallenged. We’re going to apply the technique to a hypothetical situation that some folks with OCD may be able to relate to. This example involves someone who believes that contamination is going to create a threat to their baby which can then lead to reduced affection, touch, and play. The belief we are going to challenge is: …

Loneliness. There’s a skill for that.

August 7th, 2018jm@ownhope.org0 Comments

We are becoming lonelier and it’s hurting us. 1 This might come as a relief, you probably thought you were the only person without close friends. You’re not and there are plenty of reasons for it. One reason is the changing labor market.2 We have moved away from a manufacturing economy, most of us are in either a service profession or a professional environment. Both make it more difficult to create and maintain substantial relationships. We are constantly working as individuals serving other individuals or solving problems. Work environments have become more competitive, we are moving from one job to …

Designed For Crisis

July 30th, 2018jm@ownhope.org0 Comments

The term crisis tends to bring with it thoughts of difficult events and our worst fears including our own mortality. Part of what amplifies our distress is how we approach a crisis cognitively and behaviorally. There are a few things you can do to tap into your own natural ability to cope with a crisis and perhaps even capitalize on it. Rethink How You Understand the Term Many things we consider good or positive events are in fact crises. The birth of a child, going to college, starting your first job, transitioning from one developmental stage to another all involve …

Suicidality and Safety Plans

July 26th, 2018jm@ownhope.org2 Comments

One area of critical importance in working with clients who struggle with depression, anxiety, and OCD is ensuring that a thorough assessment of suicide risk and a plan in coping with suicidal ideation is completed during the assessment and throughout treatment. Even if a client does not have a history of suicidality, a safety plan is a good thing to discuss and have in place. Safety Plans should include the following: Activites that clients have engaged in that have helped them avoid suicide and parasuicidal behaviors in the past or if there is no history, activities they imagine would help them cope. …

The Importance of Manipulation

July 20th, 2018jm@ownhope.org0 Comments

Manipulation is necessary. I usually get weird looks from clients when I say that and I can understand why. It has such a nasty connotation. As a culture, we focus on one meaning: “the action of manipulating someone in a clever or unscrupulous way.” but there is another: “the action of manipulating something in a skillful manner.” Link (in case you don’t believe me) We are all manipulative. From the minute we are born, we manipulate. We quickly learn that when we cry parents meet our needs and parents in meeting our needs cause us to stop crying. If not …

Drive the Feeling

July 13th, 2018jm@ownhope.org0 Comments

Most of us tend to think about emotions as either good or bad, positive or negative but every emotion can be helpful and destructive. One goal of DBT and CBT is to help folks use emotions more effectively; to understand the purpose of each emotion and to decide how to use emotions (if at all) in achieving our objectives. One important step is to determine whether the context or situation reasonably connect to the feeling. If they do, then we work towards figuring out how to abide by the emotion effectively. If they don’t then we act opposite the emotion. …

Of Monkey Bridges and Bánh Mì Sandwiches: from Sài Gòn to Texas

July 9th, 2018jm@ownhope.org0 Comments

I am not a “book recommender” in my practice, I have a core of books I suggest if clients ask – three of them are CBT or DBT workbooks, the other is Night by Elie Wiesel (yes many folks have still not read that book). I recommend “Night” because it is a powerful demonstration of “Meaning” within DBT’s IMPROVE skill and a source for “Comparison” in ACCEPTS. Well, another book made the list for the same reasons – “Of Monkey Bridges and Bánh Mì Sandwiches: from Sài Gòn to Texas” by Oanh Ngo Usadi. The book is a personal account …