There is a growing call for clinicians to shift away from formulating neurodevelopmental differences as signs of pathology or deficit, and to move toward seeing these differences as part of normal human variation, much in the same way as other diversity factors (e.g., race, sexual orientation). This webinar will highlight the clinical implications of working from a neurodiversity perspective, with emphasis on the benefits of approaching care from a frame of inclusivity. Using autism spectrum disorder (ASD) as an example, Dr. Hong will explain how neurodiversity-related differences can completely shift CBT formulations of maladaptive or unwanted behaviors and how not including neurodiversity factors into the formulation can lead to poor progress and, at times, harmful outcomes. She will then offer concrete ways to incorporate neurodiversity-related differences into the formulation while also ensuring an evidence-based approach to care. Dr. Hong will also touch on ways to adapt interventions to account for neurodiversity related differences and give patients language to explain their differences and needs to others. Throughout the presentation, Dr. Hong will use real-world clinical examples to inform concepts presented. The webinar aims to help clinicians feel empowered with ways to reframe difficulties that come with holding an (often invisible) minoritized identity and use existing evidence-based treatment strategies more effectively with neurodiverse individuals.

Long considered an important treatment for depression, behavioral activation (BA) is a robust and transdiagnostic change process. Because reinforcement-based deficits are evident across disorders, BA is an evidence-based means of targeting reward systems and avoidance for disorders beyond depression (e.g., in PTSD, anxiety, disordered eating and substance misuse/abuse). Culturally-attuned BA combines activation with an intentional focus on personal values and meaning, and can be implemented by providers across levels of professional training. Improving session effectiveness and outcomes requires viewing age as a facet of diversity that intersects with other identities, calling for both humility and the age-appropriate application of culturally-attuned change strategies. This webinar highlights strategies and age-appropriate resources for applying BA with culturally diverse individuals across the lifespan, as we help our clients cultivate meaning in their daily lives.

Eating disorders have been long stereotyped as disorders associated with thinness, whiteness, affluence, female gender, and youth. Although compelling data indicate that this stereotype is inaccurate and that eating disorders affect many who do not conform to the stereotype, the stereotype both persists and is often believed by health providers and laypersons alike. Importantly, research indicates that individuals who defy the eating disorder stereotype are less likely to be correctly diagnosed by providers and less likely to self-identify as having an eating disorder. The treatment of eating disorders also is commonly viewed as an area of clinical specialty; as such, many CBT practitioners, particularly those who work with populations that defy the eating disorder stereotype, obtain little if any training in the treatment and assessment of eating disorders. Combined, these factors (i.e., powerful inaccurate stereotype and lack of training) set the stage for significant diagnostic error, in particular, overlooked eating disorder diagnoses. Missed eating disorder diagnoses are problematic for numerous reasons. First, research indicates that early identification improves eating disorder clinical outcome. Second, eating disorders are associated with elevated mortality and significant medical morbidity, and failure to diagnose them can worsen medical sequelae and contribute to inappropriate medical treatment. Third, failure to diagnose an existing eating disorder can lead to incomplete and faulty clinical conceptualization and treatment planning. Finally, diagnostic accuracy is linked to the ethical principles of beneficence, non-maleficence, justice, and autonomy. The primary aim of this training is to help clinicians who have minimal eating disorders background understand why clients who they may think are at low risk for an eating disorder (e.g., those who are racially and ethnically minoritized, live in a higher weight body, identify as male, are of older age, are of lower income, identify as LGBTQIA+ etc…) are, in fact, very much potentially at risk. This webinar is also appropriate for those who have eating disorders training and can acknowledge that they, like so many in the eating disorders field, still feel the pull of the stereotype.

According to the CDC, nearly 80,000 people died from opioid-related overdose deaths in 2022 in the US. The opioid epidemic remains an urgent concern that requires continued attention and treatment, particularly by medical and mental health providers. This 90-minute presentation will provide a brief overview of the current state of opioid use within the US along with a review of the best practices to assess, diagnose and treat individuals with opioid use disorders (OUDs). The primary focus will be on the evidence-based treatments including pharmacologic and therapeutic interventions. Ethical considerations and barriers to treatment will be explored in addition to important sociocultural factors and resources available to aid providers in effectively treating individuals with OUD in outpatient settings.

Pediatric anxiety disorders are common, with prevalence rates ranging from 9-20% (Bitsko et al., 2022; Costello, Egger, & Angold, 2005). Excessive symptoms of anxiety that are impairing but do not meet diagnostic thresholds are also common (Costello & Shugart, 1992; Rapee et al., 2012) and the COVID-19 pandemic has led to significant increases in anxiety (and other youth mental health problems; Ravens-Sieberer et al., 2021; Castagnoli et al., 2020). Moreover, it is well established that untreated anxiety has a broad range of negative effects on academic, social, and familial functioning (Swan & Kendall, 2016). Despite the high prevalence of impairing anxiety, the majority of these youth remain unidentified and untreated. One approach to address the service utilization gap, is to deliver interventions in schools. School-based interventions improve access to care –especially for youth in rural and under-resourced communities where mental health specialists are sparse. This webinar will present the basic components of school-based interventions for youth with anxiety. The talk will also focus on efforts to enhance the capacity of non-mental health specialists, such as school nurses and teachers, to assist youth with anxiety.

This workshop describes ethical issues in treating suicidal patients and distinguishes between the roles of laws, risk management, and ethics. Using safety planning-type interventions as an example, the presenter will illustrate how psychotherapists can enhance the quality of their interventions by paying particular attention to ethical principles.

Questions of life and living, joy, and thriving beg more of educators and researchers who think and theorize about power, privilege, and oppression. This session confronts living in and against norms that contend for holistic wellness. It will offer recommendations for cultivating habits and creating environments that afford opportunities to affirm affective capacities, specifically, joy as a present and persistent way of being.