Acceptance-Based Behavior Therapy for Anxiety and Related Disorders
Presented by Susan Orsillo, PhD

Web Conference Description

Although fear and anxiety are natural, human experiences, many struggle with these responses on a near daily basis. Over 28% of adults in the U.S. experience diagnostic levels of anxiety, and countless more struggle with worry and anxiety over life stressors and transitions.


There is considerable evidence for the efficacy of cognitive-behavioral therapy for most anxiety disorders. However, there is still much room for improvement. A sizeable minority of clients do not reach and maintain clinically significant gains with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and others refuse to engage in methods such as exposure therapy.
 
Fortunately, many in the mental health field are seeking new ways to engage clients struggling with anxiety in therapy and improve therapeutic outcomes. One promising new direction involves the integration of acceptance and mindfulness with traditional behavioral and cognitive behavioral approaches.
 
In this Web Conference, Dr. Sue Orsillo will provide conceptual, empirical, and practical guidelines for using acceptance-based behavioral therapy with clients struggling with anxiety. Drawing from her own research and clinical experience in developing and investigating an acceptance-based behavioral therapy for generalized anxiety and associated disorders, she will present an evidence-based conceptual model that can be used to understand a range of clinical presentations and to guide intervention strategies. She will then present a range of clinical strategies, including mindfulness practices that can be used to target the central elements of this model (for instance, emotional avoidance and restricted engagement in meaningful aspects of one’s life). She will also describe strategies for helping clients clarify what is most important to them in various areas of their lives (relationships, work/school/home management, self-care) and helping them to more fully engage in living full, meaningful lives, regardless of the symptoms they experience.

This Web Conference is designed to help clinicians:


1) Identify ways in which responses and reactions to anxiety compound distress and lead to behavioral avoidance;
2) Identify and implement mindfulness practices that can increase awareness and decrease avoidance; 
3) Apply mindfulness practices to help clients clarify emotions and increase acceptance and willingness;
4) Formulate ways to help clients articulate their values and engage in values consistent actions.


If you have any questions about this Web Conference, or would like more information, please contact us here.

Acceptance-Based Behavior Therapy for Anxiety and Related Disorders
 

 

About Susan Orsillo, PhD

Susan Orsillo, PhD

Susan Orsillo, PhD

Dr. Susan Orsillo is Professor of Psychology at Suffolk University in Boston, MA. She earned her Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the State University of New York at Albany and completed her internship and post-doctoral training at the National Center for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Boston VAHCS. In collaboration with her doctoral students in clinical psychology, Dr. Orsillo has developed a number of prevention and treatment programs that integrate acceptance and mindfulness with evidence-based behavioral approaches.


Dr. Orsillo has written and published extensively about mindfulness, anxiety, and psychotherapy, and has been involved in anxiety disorders research and treatment for over 20 years. With funding from the National Institutes of Health, she has spent the last decade developing the treatment approach that is the basis of this web conference. She co-edited Acceptance and Mindfulness-Based Approaches to Anxiety: Conceptualization and Treatment and co-authored Mindfulness and Acceptance-Based Behavioral Therapies in Practice and The Mindful Way through Anxiety. In addition, Dr. Orsillo has published journal articles and book chapters, primarily in the area of anxiety. She regularly conducts training workshops around the country and her work has been featured in Elle Magazine, the Shambhala Sun, BehaviorTherapist.com, and on the Audrey Chapman Show. She lives in the Boston area with her husband and two children. More information about her work, including guided mindfulness exercises, are available at www.mindfulwaythroughanxietybook.com

Continuing Education (CE) Information

1.5 CE credits will be provided by GoodTherapy.org for attending this Web Conference in its entirety. GoodTherapy.org is approved as a continuing education provider by the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC) and the California Board of Behavioral Sciences (BBS). GoodTherapy.org is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. GoodTherapy.org maintains responsibility for this program and its content.

How the Web Conference Works

In short, participants will be able to listen to the event by calling in to our teleconference center. Prior to the event, all participants will be sent an email with instructions on how to login to the teleconference center. This event will include lecture, interaction, and question and answer periods.

Registration Information

This Web Conference is available for free to GoodTherapy.org Members.

This event has already taken place. An audio recording for this event may be available in the Member's Area.