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Digital Seminar

Taming the Amygdala

Accessible Strategies for Calming the Anxious Brain

Speaker:
Catherine Pittman, PhD, HSPP
Duration:
2 Hours
Language:
Presented in EN, subtitles in EN and FR, handouts in EN and FR
Copyright:
Oct 14, 2023
Product Code:
POS059557
Media Type:
Digital Seminar


Description

Treatment of anxiety is more effective when it is rooted in an understanding of neuroscience.  Therapists need clear neuroscience explanations that they can readily use with the diverse variety of clients suffering from anxiety.  In this workshop, you will not only learn effective, brain-based strategies for calming the anxious brain, but also learn how to explain the strategies to clients in ways that motivate change.   

Understand how to identify the roots of anxiety in the amygdala and provide effective interventions to tame the amygdala.  Learn how “the language of the amygdala” can be explained in an accessible, straightforward way, empowering clients to change their brains to resist anxiety.  Help clients identify how the cortex causes the amygdala to produce anxiety, and train them in strategies to resist anxiety-igniting cognitions.   

Credit

Program Information

Planning Committee Disclosure - No relevant relationships

All members of the PESI, Inc. planning committee have provided disclosures of financial relationships with ineligible organizations and any relevant non-financial relationships prior to planning content for this activity. None of the committee members had relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies or other potentially biasing relationships to disclose to learners.  For speaker disclosures, please see the faculty biography.



Canada Credit - *

NOTE: Tuition includes one free CE Certificate (participant will be able to print the certificate of completion after passing the online post-test (80% passing score) and completing the evaluation). Instructional methods will include PowerPoint, didactic lecture, and others.

Continuing Education Information:  Listed below are the continuing education credit(s) currently available for this non-interactive self-study package. Program content is reviewed periodically per accrediting board rules for currency and appropriateness for credit. Credit approvals are subject to change. Please note, your licensing board dictates whether self-study is an acceptable form of continuing education, as well as which credit types are acceptable for continuing education hours. Please refer to your licensing board's rules and regulations. If your profession is not listed, please contact your licensing board to determine your continuing education requirements and check for reciprocal approval. 
For other credit inquiries not specified below, please contact info@pesi.com or 800-844-8260 before purchase.

Materials that are included in this course may include interventions and modalities that are beyond the authorized practice of your profession.  As a licensed professional, you are responsible for reviewing the scope of practice, including activities that are defined in law as beyond the boundaries of practice in accordance with and in compliance with your profession's standards.  

For Planning Committee disclosures, please see the statement above.  For speaker disclosures, please see the faculty biography.

 


Canada Credit - ---

Earn up to 2.0 CE hours. Please see below, for more details, as credit amounts vary by jurisdiction and profession. 


Canada Credit - Canadian Counsellors and Psychotherapists

PESI, Inc. is approved by the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association to offer continuing education for counsellors and psychotherapists. PESI, Inc. maintains responsibility for the program. This self-study activity is approved for 2.0 credit hours.


Canada Credit - Social Workers - National ASWB ACE

PESI, Inc., #1062, is approved as an ACE provider to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. ACE provider approval period: January 27, 2026 - January 27, 2029. Social workers completing this course receive 2.0 Clinical continuing education credits.

Course Level: Intermediate Format: Recorded asynchronous distance. Full attendance is required; no partial credits will be offered for partial attendance.

 

Canadian Social Workers: Canadian provinces may accept activities offered by providers approved by the ASWB ACE program for ongoing professional development.


Canada Credit - Other Professions

This self-study activity qualifies for 2.0 continuing education clock hours as required by many national and local licensing boards and professional organizations. Save your activity advertisement and certificate of completion, and contact your own board or organization for specific requirements.


US National Boards - Addiction Counselors - NAADAC

This self-study course has been approved by PESI, Inc., as a NAADAC Approved Education Provider, for educational credits. NAADAC Provider #77553. PESI, Inc. is responsible for all aspects of their programming.

This self-study course offers 2.0 continuing education contact hours in the Counseling Services skill group. Full attendance is required; no partial credit will be awarded for partial attendance.



Handouts

Speaker

Catherine Pittman, PhD, HSPP's Profile

Catherine Pittman, PhD, HSPP Related seminars and products

Saint Mary's College


Catherine Pittman, PhD, HSPP, is a professor of psychology at Saint Mary’s College, Notre Dame, Indiana. Dr. Pittman is the author of the popular books Rewire the Anxious Brain: How to Use the Neuroscience of Fear to End Anxiety, Panic, and Worry (New Harbinger Publications) and Taming Your Amygdala (PESI Publishing & Media). She has a background in cognitive behavioral therapy, neuropsychology, fear-conditioning research, and has treated anxiety-based disorders in clinical practice for over 25 years.

Dr. Pittman’s experience makes her uniquely qualified to provide a clear understanding of neuroscience and how that informs the selection and application of successful anxiety treatment strategies. She is recognized for her clear, accessible explanations of the role of the amygdala, and her approaches to lifestyle change and cognitive restructuring that help motivate clients to be more engaged and motivated in therapy. Dr. Pittman regularly presents workshops at national conferences and webinars on anxiety treatment and is an active member of the public education committee of the Anxiety and Depression Association of America.

Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Dr. Catherine Pittman has employment relationships with Saint Mary's College and Renew Counseling. She receives royalties as a published author. Dr. Pittman receives a speaking honorarium, recording, and book royalties from Psychotherapy Networker and PESI, Inc. She has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: Dr. Catherine Pittman is a member of the Anxiety and Depression Association of America.


Additional Info

Program Information

Access for Self-Study (Non-Interactive)

Access never expires for this product.

 

For a more detailed outline that includes times or durations of time, if needed, please contact cepesi@pesi.com. ** no”Access to Self Study” tab available. 


Questions?

Visit our FAQ page at https://www.pesicanada.ca/faq or contact us at https://www.pesicanada.ca/contact-us.


Objectives

  1. Demonstrate the role of the amygdala in maintaining anxiety disorders for purposes of client psychoeducation.
  2. Explain how clients who know the language of the amygdala have improved treatment engagement and mindfulness.
  3. Use neurologically informed strategies such as relaxation, exercise, exposure, and sleep interventions to produce changes in the amygdala. 

Outline

Key Knowledge about the Amygdala and Anxiety 

  • Help clients understand the experience of stress, anxiety, and panic 
  • How the amygdala learns through experience 
  • Why vivid experiences in therapy are needed 

 

Essential Steps to Using the Amygdala in Therapy 

  1. Form a strong, empathic therapeutic alliance 
  2. How does your client experience anxiety? 
  3. Focus on client’s personal goals 
  4. Connect amygdala to client concerns and questions 
  5. Change the amygdala rather than avoid anxiety 
  6. Acceptance of limits of control using Serenity Prayer 

 

Teach Client’s Where Their Anxiety Comes From 

  1. Amygdala pathway – bottom-up triggering of emotion 
  2. Cortex pathway – top-down generation of emotion 
  3. Both pathways require the amygdala for anxiety to be produced 
  4. Help clients recognize their two pathways 
  5. How anxiety is initiated in each pathway and how they influence each other 

Target Audience

  • Counsellors
  • Marriage & Family Therapists
  • Physicians
  • Psychologists
  • Speech-Language Pathologists
  • Social Workers
  • Other Mental Health Professionals

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