Neuroscience and the Modern Clinician: Connect Science, Research, and Biology to Your Treatment Plans for Anxiety

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Sherrie All, PhD Related seminars and products

Chicago Center for Cognitive Wellness

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Sherrie All, PhD, is a licensed clinical neuropsychologist who has specialized in treating people with dementia, Parkinson’s disease, TBI, MS, and other neurological disorders for over a decade. Dr. All is the founder and director of the Chicago Center for Cognitive Wellness, a private neuropsychology practice specializing in cognitive rehabilitation and brain health. The evidence-based cognitive rehabilitation interventions she uses have helped hundreds of adults experiencing cognitive declines improve their thinking skills, expand their functional independence, and enhance their brain health. Dr. All has worked as a consultant to the Mather LifeWays Institute on Aging, helping to develop and evaluate a holistic brain fitness program, and her work with individuals on ways to lower their personal risk for dementia has earned the attention of media outlets including The New Yorker and Crain’s Chicago Business. Dr. All earned her PhD in clinical psychology from Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, is a member of the American Psychological Association and author of The Neuroscience of Memory: Seven Skills to Optimize Your Brain Power, Improve Memory and Stay Sharp at Any Age.

Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Sherrie All is the owner of Chicago Center for Cognitive Wellness. She receives royalties as a published author. Sherrie All receives a speaking honorarium and recording royalties from PESI, Inc. She has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-Financial: Sherrie All is a member of the American Psychological Association. the Illinois Psychological Association, and the International Neuropsychological Society.

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Objectives

1. Communicate how an understanding of neurological processes can inform mental health professionals’ choice of therapeutic technique.
2. Implement in-session psycho-educational techniques to make the neurobiology of mental health conditions understandable for clients thereby improving the potential for motivation and engagement in therapy.
3. Establish how neural pathways are related to mental health disorders, and connect this information to the utilization of therapeutic interventions to reduce stress and manage addiction.
4. Assess how research on the mechanisms of the brain that detect and respond to threats has enhanced our understanding of anxiety disorders in which altered threat processing is a factor.
5. Characterize the role of memory in trauma and communicate how memory malleability impacts the treatment of clients with traumatic memories.
6. Articulate how mindfulness can be used as an adjunctive approach in cognitive-behavioral treatment plans to help manage symptoms of depression.

Outline

How Neuroscience Can Enhance Therapy:

What (and Why) Clinicians Need to Know About the Nervous System

• Brain basics – structure and function
  • 12 structures you need to know
  • How the brain organizes
• Key pathways involved in common disorders
  • Pain pathway
  • Reward pathway
  • Fear-stress pathway
• Default Mode and Task Mode Networks
• Impact of relationships on our nervous system
  • Mirror neurons
  • Oxytocin
• Simple explanations and 3-D brain model for clients
• How neurobiology can help you to determine treatment methods and set goals
• ”Our brains” and objectivity in therapy
• Limitations of “brain-based” approaches

• Hype vs. the “two-way” street of brain plasticity
• Physical vs. functional change – structural or at the synapse
• The strength of connections
• Timeframes for change
• How neuroplasticity can help you foster change
  • Explaining neuroplasticity to clients

• The neural bases of threat processing
• Key CBT concepts and techniques
• Combining cognitive work with:
  • Mindful awareness of emotions
  • Get physical – how using the body can ease anxiety symptoms
  • Breathing exercises and relaxation training

• The depressed brain – structural and functional
• The neural interrelationships of depression and anxiety
• Behavioral activation – get active!
• Mindfulness as an adjunctive approach
• Compassion, gratitude and depressive symptoms

• Malleability of memory: implications for trauma treatment
• How childhood trauma changes the developmental trajectory of the brain
• Polyvagal Theory, trauma and the body – the research
• Imagery techniques – imaginal exposure
• Grounding and interoception

• How stress impacts the nervous system
• The adverse effects of long-term stress exposure
• The role of the stress/fear pathway
• CBT-based coping skills for stressful situations

• Brain areas involved in addiction
• Pleasure and pain pathways
• Prefrontal connections and judgement
• How addiction can change the brain
• Motivational Interviewing
• Contingency management

• fMRI imaging – blood flow vs. neuronal activity
• How only looking at brain activations produces an incomplete picture
• Neuroscientific studies, sample size, and validity
• Animal research – directly applicable to humans?
• Psychotherapeutic techniques – specific limitations and risks

Target Audience

• Counselors
• Psychotherapists
• Psychologists
• Social Workers
• Addiction Counselors
• Marriage & Family Therapists
• Case Managers
• Therapists
• Nurses
• Other Mental Health Professionals

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