What is ketamine? by Dr. Jack Van Bezooyen

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What is ketamine? by Dr. Jack Van Bezooyen

What is ketamine? by Dr. Jack Van Bezooyen

The Mind Therapy Clinic has been receiving a lot of questions related to the use of ketamine for the treatment of depression, anxiety, trauma-related disorders, and substance use disorder over the last few months. The following information answers some of the most common questions related to ketamine including what the medication can help with, what to expect from the experience, and the different ways in which it is used. 

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ON-DEMAND Webinar: Co-occurring disorders & family's role

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ON-DEMAND Webinar: Co-occurring disorders & family's role

Join addiction psychiatrist, Jeff DeVido, MD, and Matt Blagys, PhD to learn about complex cases and how to help families when faced with difficult situations.

Get the latest information about complex cases - those presenting with co-occurring disorders

Equip yourself with information on how you can help families/clients (upstream before they are faced with negative health conditions)

Learn the importance of integrated care and what that means

This CE training is provided to Mind Therapy Clinic’s partners free of charge.

Reserve your seat by clicking here.

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Upcoming Webinar Grief Isn’t Something to Get Over

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Upcoming Webinar Grief Isn’t Something to Get Over

Every human on the planet will suffer grief. However, each of us will grieve and process loss in

our own way. How can we best support a grieving friend or family member? What are some practices we can develop so that grief becomes an integrated process in our lives and not just an “event”?

National Grief Awareness Day gives us an opportunity to reflect on these questions. It’s observed annually on August 30. Dr. Mary Lumia will explain the science behind bereavement and to convey an understanding of how we adapt to death as a part of life.

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Group Therapy Available: Restorative Movement Yoga Therapy

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Group Therapy Available: Restorative Movement Yoga Therapy

Through the sequence of slower conscious movements, group members increase physical strength, and flexibility, and bring balance to the mind. Brief guided meditations are included to improve concentration and focus levels. These practices help reduce stress, improve physical stamina, and cultivate a positive attitude to life. All levels are welcome.

This Group meets in person on Fridays at 3:00 PM to 4:20 PM.

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New Group Therapy Available: Goals Group!

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New Group Therapy Available: Goals Group!

The Goal Setting group is a skills-oriented group that helps clients identify what is most important and how to make small changes over time in order to be more aligned with their values. With peer and clinician support, members learn to identify, set goals, and work through barriers in order to improve mental health and move towards what they are most passionate about in life.

This Group meets in person on Thursdays from 11:30am to 12:50pm.

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Welcome Jack Van Bezooyen, MD to the team.

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Welcome Jack Van Bezooyen, MD to the team.

Welcome Dr. Van Bezooyen, MD to the team. He joins us after completing Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship at USCF this year. He has also served as Chief Resident at VA Medical Center and Emory University where he also did an additional two years of specialized training in psychotherapy. He received his medical degree from Keck School of Medicine at University of Southern California. During his fellowship, he worked at San Francisco VA Hospital to obtain additional training in addiction psychiatry.

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FREE CE Webinar 7/26: Learn about co-occurring disorders & family's role

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FREE CE Webinar 7/26: Learn about co-occurring disorders & family's role

Join addiction psychiatrist, Jeff DeVido, MD, and Matt Blagys, PhD to learn about complex cases and how to help families when faced with difficult situations.

Get the latest information about complex cases - those presenting with co-occurring disorders

Equip yourself with information on how you can help families/clients (upstream before they are faced with negative health conditions)

Learn the importance of integrated care and what that means

This CE training is provided to Mind Therapy Clinic’s partners free of charge.

Reserve your seat by clicking here.

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Welcome Martin Epson, MD, JD, MTS

/ Mind Therapy Clinic/
Welcome Martin Epson, MD, JD, MTS

Welcome Dr. Marin Epson!

Dr. Epson earned his medical degree from Columbia University, his law degree from Lewis & Clark Law School, and Master of Theological Studies from Harvard Divinity School. Dr. Epson completed training in adult psychiatry and forensic psychiatry at Oregon Health & Science University.

Board certified in general adult and forensic psychiatry, Dr. Epson has more than ten years of experience treating individuals undertaking personal reckonings and transformations. He has experience treating trauma, psychosis, depression through medication and therapy - supporting a renewed sense of meaning in the lives of his patients.

Dr. Epson holds appointments as an Assistant Clinical Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences in the Weill Institute for Neurosciences with the University of California San Francisco, as a staff psychiatrist with the San Francisco Veterans Administration, as a staff psychiatrist in the Marin County Department of Health and Human Services, and formerly was on faculty at the University of Colorado as a Consultation/Liaison Psychiatrist.

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Role Medications and TMS Play in Trauma Treatments - Update

/ Mind Therapy Clinic/
Role Medications and TMS Play in Trauma Treatments - Update

Dr. Schiller has updated his very popular article on the role medications play in trauma treatment. First published in 2016, one might argue that this update including TMS and Ketamine treatments, is even more relevant today.

Ketamine.

There has been quite a lot of interest in the use of ketamine in the treatment of depression. Ketamine has been used since the 1970’s primarily as an anesthetic. It is an NMDA receptor antagonist which accounts for much of its activity and its actions as a hallucinogen and dissociative agent. The latter also accounts for its potential for abuse. However, other effects of ketamine, perhaps a transient increase in glutamate transmission and causing an increase in the connectivity of neurons, may account for ketamine’s ability to act as an antidepressant. There is also research into the use of ketamine in the treatment of PTSD. In the most prominent studies, depressive symptoms, often present in people with PTSD did improve, but there were inconsistent results in whether specific symptoms of PTSD improved.

TMS (Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation).

While not a medication treatment, repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS or TMS) is a physical treatment which is approved for the treatment of depression. In TMS, a magnetic coil is placed over a targeted area of the head. A magnetic field goes through the skull and causes a small electric current in the brain in an area associated with depression. This area is connected to other parts of the brain which may also be secondarily stimulated and likely treat depression through increasing connections between neurons. TMS is being investigated as a treatment in a number of other psychiatric disorders including PTSD. Studies appear consistent in showing improvement in depressive symptoms in PTSD. Though further research needs to be done to draw more definitive conclusions, a number of studies have shown TMS to be well tolerated and effective in treating some of the specific symptoms of PTSD.

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Welcome Julie Sauber!

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Welcome Julie Sauber!

We are pleased to welcome Julie Sauber, PsyD. Dr. Julie Sauber is a licensed psychologist and clinical supervisor, holding a Psy.D. in clinical psychology and M.S. in counseling psychology. With nearly 20 years of experience in the mental health field, her work has been dedicated to helping adolescents, adults, couples, and families who are affected by substance use disorders and co-occurring diagnoses, such as PTSD, OCD, anxiety, panic, and mood disorders.

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Are you enabling or empowering? By Matt Blagys PhD

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It can be scary and confusing for family members to wonder whether they are helping or hurting the one they love.

Photo of Matt Blagys, PhD, Psychologist

Matt Blagys, PhD

  • Enabling refers to help offered that perpetuates rather than solves a problem

  • Empowering means giving someone the responsibility and authority to change.

Individuals who habitually enable unhealthy behavior are often referred to as co-dependent. It is a telling word because the enabler’s sense of safety and ‘okayness’ is, in a sense, dependent on his or her ability to feel in control of an uncontrollable situation.

By steppingn in to “solve” the problems of a substance abuser or a person engaging in unhealthy behaviors, the enabler takes away any motivation for the individual to take responsibility for his or her own actions. Without that motivation, there is little reason for the person to change.

Here are some questions to ask yourself when considering whether you are enabling or empowering your loved one to change:

 
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We believe that treatment shouldn’t only be for the priority family member. Rather than a ‘car wash model’—where an individual client enters treatment, does surface level work, and comes out looking shiny and new— our aim is to get ‘under the hood’ to make deeper and more long lasting changes for the entire family. In addition to the individual struggling with mental health issues and addiction, clients in our IOP and PHP programs receive a separate family therapist to support, educate, and help heal the whole family.

Have feedback for Dr. Blagys, contact him here.

In-Person IOP Groups Starting 2/28

/ Mind Therapy Clinic/
In-Person IOP Groups Starting 2/28

It’s no secret that COVID-19 has greatly impacted everyone. When the pandemic began, Mind Therapy Clinic moved quickly to a virtual platform which has allowed us to provide care to our clients and those from greater distances from the clinic.


We feel it is now safe and feasible to return to live care. We believe live care has many benefits including increased intimacy and connection to Mind Therapy Clinic staff and client peers as well as decreasing the sense of isolation and separation that has characterized the pandemic for so many people. It also provides opportunities for social engagement and offers greater access and accountability.

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New! Equine-Assisted Therapy

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Horses have been used for therapeutic purposes since the time of the ancient Greeks, and today, equine-assisted therapy is used in a variety of setting with all types of people. As a part of Mind Therapy Clinic program, we are now offering this new experiential therapy.

Providing equine-assisted therapy to individuals, groups, and families

Christina Nicholson is a lifelong horsewoman and an Equus, life and leadership coach in the Bay Area.

Coming from the corporate world, Christina got into this line of work because she believes in her bones that we each have the power to connect more deeply to ourselves and, in doing so, show up as more compassionate, authentic humans. In a world where we are constantly pulled in different directions and bombarded with distractions, Equus coaching allows clients to walk away from the chaos and fully immerse themselves in the present moment.

Coaching with horses provides an opportunity for clients to get out of their comfort zones and examine default behavior patterns and ways of thinking. This unique experiential learning modality provides a safe container for clients to explore their inner voice and dialogue, their approach to relationships, their leadership style and non-verbal communication. Clients walk away with greater awareness, a stronger sense of self, a deeper understanding of their strengths, and a sense of gratitude for their equine teacher and guide.

Equine-assisted therapy is now available through E-Street House and Mind Therapy Clinic’s intensive outpatient program.

For more information, click here and ask your question.


Welcome Betsy Thompson!

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Welcome Betsy Thompson!

We are pleased to welcome Betsy Thompson, LPCC who is a licensed Professional Clinical Counselor.

Betsy has experience providing individual, group, and family therapy to adolescents and adults. Betsy has obtained her undergraduate degree in psychology from Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia and completed her master’s degree at the University of Denver in Denver, CO. Betsy has worked in various therapeutic settings including residential treatment centers, outpatient private practice, and outpatient clinics.

Betsy has experience working with clients with PTSD, anxiety, depression, personality disorders, change of life issues, social skill struggles, and behavioral concerns. Betsy utilizes an integrative approach with an emphasis on Psychodynamic Theory, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT).

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