{"title":"Trauma-Focused ACT: A Practitioner's Guide to Working With Mind, Body, and Emotion Using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy.","authors":"Brandon Neisewander, Christopher Moreau","doi":"10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.20240018","DOIUrl":"10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.20240018","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":46822,"journal":{"name":"AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHOTHERAPY","volume":" ","pages":"215-216"},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2024-12-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142591729","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"<i>Umwelt</i>-A New Strategy for Mentalizing Patient Experience.","authors":"Jonathan Hunter","doi":"10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.20240003","DOIUrl":"10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.20240003","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>There is an inevitable limit to understanding the internal experience of patients with whom therapists work in psychotherapy. The farther their experience is from that of their therapist, the more challenging this endeavor can be. Accepting that therapists cannot exactly know a patient's internal experience invites them to explore novel ways of appreciating another person's way of perceiving relationships, deriving meaning from them, and using their experience to motivate behavior. The concept of <i>umwelt</i> can be used as a metaphor to help therapists imagine the internal world of their patients, as shaped by patients' developmental, interpersonal, and traumatic experiences. <i>Umwelt</i> refers to the unique worldview created by a species' idiosyncratic perceptual organs and survival strategies. This first Psychotherapy Musings describes the concept of <i>umwelt</i>, applies it to the case of a patient with difficult-to-treat mental health problems, and explicates the benefit of this novel perspective.</p>","PeriodicalId":46822,"journal":{"name":"AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHOTHERAPY","volume":" ","pages":"212-214"},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2024-12-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141894532","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Epigenetic Regulation in Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy.","authors":"Karla Kroflin, Anthony S Zannas","doi":"10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.20230061","DOIUrl":"10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.20230061","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Epigenetic modifications play a pivotal role in the regulation of gene expression and cell function, offering potential markers of disease states and therapeutic outcomes. Recent advancements in neuroscience have spurred interest in studying the epigenetic underpinnings of psychosomatic medicine. This review presents a new perspective on the role of epigenetic regulation in the realms of psychosomatics and psychotherapy. The authors first highlight epigenetic patterns associated with prevalent psychosomatic disorders, including irritable bowel syndrome, fibromyalgia, psoriasis, and lichen planus. For these conditions, psychotherapy serves as a treatment modality and can be conceptualized as an epigenetic intervention that beneficially affects the epigenome as part of the therapeutic process. Focusing on cognitive-behavioral and mindfulness-based therapies, the authors highlight evidence on psychotherapy-associated epigenetic signatures occurring at genes that are involved in stress response, inflammation, neurotransmission, neuroplasticity, and aging. Educating patients about the potential of psychotherapy to affect the epigenome may enhance patient engagement with and adherence to treatment, and psychotherapy-induced epigenetic changes have the potential to promote transgenerational disease prevention, underscoring the far-reaching implications of this therapeutic approach. Challenges persist in epigenetic studies, and this review aimed to catalyze further research in this burgeoning field, with the goal of enhancing patient care.</p>","PeriodicalId":46822,"journal":{"name":"AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHOTHERAPY","volume":" ","pages":"173-179"},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2024-12-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142336818","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Appreciation to Reviewers.","authors":"","doi":"10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.24076001","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.24076001","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":46822,"journal":{"name":"AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHOTHERAPY","volume":"77 4","pages":"217-218"},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2024-12-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142829668","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Affect-Focused and Exposure-Focused Psychotherapies.","authors":"John C Markowitz, Barbara L Milrod","doi":"10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.20230012","DOIUrl":"10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.20230012","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The authors discuss the two broad domains of affect-focused and exposure-focused psychotherapies, defining the characteristics and potential advantages and disadvantages of each. The two domains differ in their theoretical approaches, structures, and techniques. Exposure-focused therapies have come to dominate research and practice, leading to the relative neglect of affect-focused therapies. When the two approaches have been examined in well-conducted clinical trials, they generally appear to be equally beneficial for treating common mood, anxiety, and trauma disorders, although further research may better define differential therapeutics. The authors argue for better training in affect awareness and tolerance across psychotherapies and use a brief case vignette to illustrate several aspects of these different approaches.</p>","PeriodicalId":46822,"journal":{"name":"AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHOTHERAPY","volume":" ","pages":"104-111"},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2024-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139513857","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Trauma and Dream Work: Mending Tears in the Fabric of Time.","authors":"Cory K Chen, Nicole Nehrig","doi":"10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.20230051","DOIUrl":"10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.20230051","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Working with dreams in the context of trauma can open unique avenues for healing, in particular for patients who report feelings of numbness or a loss of meaning in their lives. Dream exploration can make facing aspects of trauma and dissociated experience more tolerable than explicitly addressing them at a conscious level. It can also reignite the capacities for reflection and meaning making disrupted by trauma. Dreams also reconnect patients to aspects of their history that can provide context for and meaning to experiences from which they have come to feel emotionally disconnected. Finally, dreams offer a way of regaining the capacity to connect with wishes, hopes, and desires that have become difficult to access because of trauma. In this article, the authors present case examples of patients with trauma and discuss how therapists worked with dream material to unlock new possibilities for these patients' lives.</p>","PeriodicalId":46822,"journal":{"name":"AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHOTHERAPY","volume":" ","pages":"129-134"},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2024-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141477695","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Matthew A Robinson, Juliann B Purcell, Laura Ward, Sherry Winternitz, Milissa L Kaufman, Kim A Baranowski, Lauren A M Lebois
{"title":"Advancing Research on and Treatment of Dissociative Identity Disorder With People With Lived Experience.","authors":"Matthew A Robinson, Juliann B Purcell, Laura Ward, Sherry Winternitz, Milissa L Kaufman, Kim A Baranowski, Lauren A M Lebois","doi":"10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.20230024","DOIUrl":"10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.20230024","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Dissociative identity disorder is a posttraumatic, psychobiological syndrome that develops over time during childhood. Despite empirical evidence supporting the validity of this diagnosis and its relation to trauma, the disorder remains a misunderstood and stigmatized condition. This article highlights expert consensus guidelines and current empirical research on the treatment of dissociative identity disorder. In addition, the authors describe the Lived Experience Advisory Panel (LEAP), which was designed to leverage the expertise of individuals with dissociative identity disorder to combat stigma and improve research, clinical programming, professional education, and public outreach related to the disorder. This article also describes how LEAP members have partnered with other researchers to create new knowledge through participatory action research in order to advance equitable service provision and effect positive change.</p>","PeriodicalId":46822,"journal":{"name":"AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHOTHERAPY","volume":" ","pages":"141-145"},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2024-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140867330","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A Meta-Analysis of Interpersonal and Psychodynamic Psychotherapies for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.","authors":"John R Keefe, Duncan Kimmel, Erica Weitz","doi":"10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.20230043","DOIUrl":"10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.20230043","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>Established trauma-focused cognitive-behavioral therapies for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have remission rates of approximately 30%-40%. Alternatively, interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) and psychodynamic psychotherapy (PDT) focus on disrupted attachment, mentalization, and social connection in PTSD and may help some patients. The authors conducted a meta-analysis on these interpersonal and affect-oriented approaches to treating PTSD.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Building on a prior meta-analysis, the authors searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing IPT or PDT with other established PTSD treatments or control conditions for adults diagnosed as having PTSD. Random-effects meta-analyses were conducted to assess outcome effect sizes and dropout rates. RCTs were rated via the Randomized Controlled Trial Psychotherapy Quality Rating Scale.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Ten RCTs (eight of IPT) comparing IPT or PDT with control (k=7) or active treatment (k=4) conditions were identified, nine of which were of adequate quality. IPT (k=5) and PDT (k=2), when analyzed together, were superior to control conditions overall (g=-1.14, p=0.011 [as was IPT alone: g=-0.88, p=0.034]) and to waitlist (g=-1.49) and treatment-as-usual (g=-0.70) groups. Effect sizes, however, may have been inflated by outliers or publication bias. IPT (k=3) and PDT (k=1), when analyzed together, were equally efficacious compared with other active PTSD treatments (primarily exposure-based psychotherapies), as was IPT alone, and had lower dropout rates (relative risk=0.63, p=0.049 for IPT and PDT analyzed together; relative risk<i>=</i>0.61, p=0.098 for IPT alone).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Affect-focused therapies hold promise in the treatment of PTSD. IPT has demonstrated efficacy in multiple trials, whereas the evidence base for PDT is sparse.</p>","PeriodicalId":46822,"journal":{"name":"AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHOTHERAPY","volume":" ","pages":"119-128"},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2024-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141894533","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Affect-Focused Psychotherapies for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.","authors":"John R Keefe","doi":"10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.20240033","DOIUrl":"10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.20240033","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":46822,"journal":{"name":"AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHOTHERAPY","volume":"77 3","pages":"101-103"},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2024-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142298479","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Clinical Case of Trauma-Focused Psychodynamic Psychotherapy for a Veteran With PTSD and Race-Based Trauma.","authors":"Michelle Kehn, Barbara Milrod, Cory K Chen","doi":"10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.20230040","DOIUrl":"10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.20230040","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":46822,"journal":{"name":"AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHOTHERAPY","volume":"77 3","pages":"146-150"},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2024-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142298480","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}