Jennifer L. Abel – Anxiety, Worry & Panic, Effective Strategies to Calm the Anxious Mind

Do you want to gain powerful techniques for your clients who struggle with treatment resistant anxiety, worry and panic? Learn how to assess anxious habits, symptoms and behaviors using effective cutting-edge, evidence-based strategies…even with your toughest clients!

Dr. Jennifer Abel will teach you how to stop the anxiety spiral early to significantly reduce the habit of worry and panic using self-controlled desensitization. Experience how evidence-based treatments can help your clients problem solve, reduce tension, and increase energy.

Learn unique, effective approaches to mindfulness, cognitive therapy, and exposure, including thought-labeling, interoceptive exposure, and better-but believable thoughts. Case studies, role plays, demonstrations and interactive discussions will be utilized in this cutting-edge seminar.

1. Articulate components of the “anxiety spiral” and utilize several evidence-based strategies (including self-controlled desensitization) to prevent exacerbation of symptoms.
2. Specify five potential anxiety treatment pitfalls and learn evidence-based approaches to avoid or correct them.
3. Implement four mindfulness strategies for treating anxiety symptoms in a clinical setting.
4. Evaluate the inverse relationship between worry and problem solving, and identify its implications for treatment of anxiety.
5. Examine the clinical presentation of panic, worry and fear of guilt and how they compare to Obsessive Compulsive Disorder; learn clinical strategies to stop these cycles of negative reinforcement.
6. Develop clinical skills to address treatment-resistant issues, including perfectionism, subjugation, procrastination, hypochondriasis, and catastrophizing/intolerance of uncertainty.

Anxiety Spirals, Panic and Early Cue Detection

• Examples of Worry Spirals and Panic Spirals
• The Empirical Evidence
• 3 Benefits of Catching Anxiety Early
• Reminders for Catching Anxiety Early

Mindfulness

• Move Toward Relaxation vs. Away From Anxiety
• Process vs. Command
• Present Focus – Mindfulness as a Relaxation Tool
• Acceptance
• Observation of Thoughts and Emotion
• Labeling of Thoughts and Emotions
• Observation and Labeling Game

Self-Controlled Desensitization (SCD)

• Rationale for SCD
• Formal SCD
• In-Session SCD
• Active Relaxation

Cognitive Therapy

• An Alternative Way to Do Cognitive Therapy – B3s
• Find Alternative Thoughts
• The Role of “Shoulds” and “Need To’s”
• Change to “Want To’s”
• The Humor of Worry
• Deal with Superstitious Worry
• Limitations of Research and CBT Interventions

Problem Solving

• Worry Prevents Problem Solving-Evidence
• 4 Ways to Do Problem Solving

OCD-Like Symptoms in Panic and Worry

• Dangers of a Poor Assessment
• Stop Encouraging Avoidance and Escape
• Assess for Negative Reinforcement
• Remove Crutches
• Traditional Exposure
• Interoceptive Exposure for Panic
• Finding and Flooding “The Real Worry”
• Risks Associated with Treatment of Panic
• Related Research Limitations

Reduce Tension and Increase Energy

• Progressive-Muscle Relaxation
• Quick Alternatives to PMR
• Energy Conservation

Problems That are Often Treatment Resistant and How to Approach Them

• Hypochondriasis and Fear of Untimely Death
• Perfectionism
• Subjugation
• Catastrophizing/Intolerance of Uncertainty

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