Frank Anderson – A Therapist’s Guide to the Psychopharmacology of Trauma and Dissociation

Outline

• Effectively approaching traumatized clients with medication supports
• Classification of the different types of trauma
  • Normative responses
  • Iatrogenic risks of rapid psychopharmacological treatment
• Introduction to Internal Family Systems (IFS)
  • Working with “parts of self” and medication interventions
  • Primary types of parts
• Therapists’ role in medications – facilitating compliance
  • Indications for medication referrals
  • Integrating IFS with medication management
  • Video case example – securing parts agreement and clarifying expectations
• Neuroscience and the neurobiology of PTSD
  • Neural networks and neural integration
  • Fear response circuitry – normal and disrupted function
• Neurotransmitters and medications
  • Specific effects of most commonly used medication interventions
• Treating Acute Trauma
  • Current psychopharmacological research and new directions
  • Negative effects of benzodiazepine use
• Treating PTSD
  • Indicated medications and common side effects
• Psychedelic assisted psychotherapy
  • Enhancing self-compassion and reducing defenses
  • Limitations of current research
• Hormones and PTSD
• Polyvagal theory and Dissociation
  • Differentiating ventral and dorsal parasympathetic function
• Treating Dissociation – applications of atypical antipsychotics
  • Medications new to the market
• Psychosis, Bipolar Disorder and Trauma – Co-morbidities and Trauma
  • Use of PRN medications and scheduling
  • Discriminating between biological and emotional symptoms
• Sleep disturbances
  • Psychotropics used – effects and side effects
• Attention Deficit Disorder – overlap and medication interaction with PTSD
• Substance abuse and indicated medications
• Depression and co-morbid PTSD
  • Star-D study results
  • Polypharmacy for PTSD symptomology
• OCD
• Alternative treatments for Trauma