Imagined Ugliness: Understanding and Treating Body Dysmorphic Disorder
by Sabine Wilhelm, Ph.D.
Professor at Harvard Medical School
Director of the Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and Related Disorders Program at the Massachusetts General Hospital.
Thursday, May 12th, 2016
Check in and registration 6:30 pm
Lecture 7:00 pm- 9:00 pm
Weill Cornell Medical College
Lecture Hall A-250, 2nd Floor
1300 York Ave., New York NY 10065
Established professionals, early career professionals, and students from all applied, research, and academic settings are invited to attend. Tickets are non-refundable or exchangeable.
Topic Description:
Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) is a severe body image disorder characterized by a preoccupation with an imagined or slight flaw in appearance. The most common appearance preoccupations involve the face or head (e.g., skin, hair), but any body part can be the focus of concern. BDD is a relatively common and often disabling illness with high suicide rates. The purpose of this presentation is to provide information on empirically-based cognitive-behavioral treatment strategies designed to help individuals with BDD. Dr. Wilhelm will first describe how to correctly recognize, diagnose, and conceptualize individuals with BDD. Participants will then learn a range of therapeutic techniques including: cognitive strategies for delusional and non delusional BDD, mindfulness exercises, attentional retraining, strategies to address low self-acceptance, novel strategies to reduce common BDD behaviors (e.g., body checking, comparing themselves with others) and strategies for involving patients’ families. In addition, motivational strategies for helping patients overcome resistance to treatment will be presented.
You will learn:
1. How to recognize, diagnose, assess and conceptualize BDD
2. How to engage a patient in CBT for BDD
3. How to design various cognitive and behavioral treatment strategies, which will allow the patient to develop new ways of thinking as well as new ways of behaving
Speaker Bio:
Sabine Wilhelm is a Professor at the Harvard Medical School. She is also the Chief of Psychology and the Director of the Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and Related Disorders Program at the Massachusetts General Hospital. She is an internationally recognized leader in the treatment of BDD, OCD, and related disorders. She has over 200 publications as well as 8 books in these areas. She recently wrote a self-help book and a treatment manual for individuals with body image problems.