Telephone consultation is an integral mode of the comprehensive treatment in dialectical behavior therapy (DBT). The mode of telephone consultation functions primarily to ensure that the skills learned in skills training group and the solutions created in DBT individual psychotherapy generalize to the client's environment. However, there are many…

Despite being the most effective treatment available, as many as one third of patients who receive exposure and response prevention (ERP) for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) do not initially respond to treatment. Recent research suggests that the n-methyl d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor partial agonist D-Cycloserine (DCS) may speed up the course…

A considerable research base underscores the importance of family functioning in the risk for and treatment of adolescent suicidal thoughts and behaviors. This paper reviews the extant empirical literature documenting associations between features of the family context and adolescent suicidal thoughts and behaviors. A case example is provided to…

Standard, outpatient Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) includes the provision of intersession telephone contact between the therapist and the client to reduce suicidal crisis behaviors, enhance skills generalization, and reduce alienation and conflict in the therapeutic relationship. Therapists providing telephone consultation need the help of…

Preliminary studies evaluating dialectical behavior therapy with adolescents have obtained promising outcomes. This multimodal therapy includes telephone consultation for adolescents and for their family members to help ensure generalization of skills from the therapy office to their natural environments. Telephone contact with the DBT therapist…

Suicidal behavior is exhibited by a diverse population of individuals and spans many diagnostic categories. In order to develop effective prevention and treatment programs, it is important to identify transdiagnostic processes that impact the many pathways to suicidality, are amenable to intervention, and affect clinical outcomes when modified. A…

Approximately 15% to 20% of women have been victims of rape and close to a third report current rape-related PTSD or clinically significant depression or anxiety. Unfortunately, very few distressed rape victims seek formal help. This suggests a need to develop alternative ways to assist the many distressed victims of sexual violence. Online…

Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) is recognized as an effective psychological treatment for panic disorder (PD). Despite its efficacy, some clients do not respond optimally to this treatment. Unfortunately, literatures on the prediction, prevention, and management of suboptimal response are not well developed. Considering this lack of empirical…

Cognitive behavioral therapists may have a unique and growing role in orthopedics departments. In helping patients cope with pain, particularly where there is no specific biomedical treatment or cure, cognitive behavioral practitioners can help prevent, early on, the transition from an acute pain complaint to a costly, disabling, and interfering…

Therapists often struggle with managing intersession contact with clients diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, particularly when dangerous and life-threatening symptoms are communicated (Gunderson, 1996). Difficulties have arisen, in part, because previous phone contacts with this population have failed to recognize the importance of…

Major psychological theories of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) have begun to suggest that worry may function as avoidance of emotions. On the basis of these findings, a number of researchers have begun to develop techniques to address emotional deficits in GAD. However, most techniques suggested to date have been from outside a…

Following a historical precis regarding exposure and a brief description of a representative cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) program for anxiety disorders in youth, we discuss several factors related to conducting exposure tasks in youth. Topics include assessing anxious situations, creating a hierarchy, and using imaginal, as well as in vivo…

This article reviews and comments on the recent Treatment for Adolescents With Depression Study (TADS) that found that cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) was less efficacious than fluoxetine alone and no more efficacious than pill placebo in the treatment of depression in adolescents. Adding CBT to fluoxetine, however, improved treatment response in…

Several studies have indicated that telephone coaching can play an important role in psychological intervention (Beebe, 2001; Burgess & Chalder, 2001; Meyersberg, 1985). Less well understood, however, is the role of telephone coaching with severe, complex, multiproblem clients, such as those diagnosed with borderline personality disorder.…

Knowledge and perceived competence regarding smoking cessation was examined among mental health professionals who specialize in the treatment of anxiety disorders (n = 75). Results indicated that therapists assess smoking behavior in less than 30% of clients, perceive themselves as "definitely unprepared" to deliver smoking cessation treatment,…