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Laura Payne

Laura Payne is a clinical psychologist specializing in cognitive-behavioral therapy

Race-Based Traumatic Stress

The effects of a cancer diagnosis and treatment may be especially upsetting for people diagnosed as adolescents and young adults.

Ending Conversion Therapy

ABCT applauds Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer for signing an executive directive to stop the use of state or federal funds for conversion therapy on minors.

ABCT Statement on Racism and Discrimination

ABCT is outraged by the murder of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and countless others at the hands of police officers and broader law enforcement, healthcare, and many other societal systems that devalue Black lives.

Time Out

Written by ABCT members Camilo Ortiz, Anne Marie Albano, Mitch Prinstein, Regine Galanti, Dan Hoffman, Tim Cavell, and Hillary Vidair, it dispels several myths about effective, evidence based discipline.

Maltreatment and Suicide

ABCT member Mitch Prinstein comments on the following article related to the link between childhood abuse and adult suicide.

CBT as Path to Understanding BLM

Over the past month, the Black Lives Matter movement has organized protests across the nation

Children’s Mental Health

ABCT offers information from other groups detailing evidence-based treatments and cognitive behavior therapy.

Trastorno Límite de la Personalidad

El trastorno límite de la personalidad (TLP) es un desorden psicológico que afecta aproximadamente entre el 1% y 2% de la población.

Suicide Briefing Book

Suicide Briefing Book: A resource for the media and lay people looking to better understand, write about, or talk about suicide.

Suicidio Adolescente

En las encuestas a estudiantes de la escuela secundaria, 8% a 10% reportan haber hecho un intento de suicidio.

Adult Traumatic Brain Injury for Mental Health Professionals

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is an alteration in brain function or mental status that results from external force.

Sexual and Gender Minority Populations

“Sex” (or “sex assigned at birth”) refers to whether someone is labeled as male or female at birth (or before birth during an ultrasound).

Selective Mutism

Selective Mutism (SM) is an anxiety disorder in which a child or adolescent fails to speak in specific social situations or to specific people (e.g., school, birthday parties, or to familiar adults), despite being able to speak in other situations and to other people (e.g., home, parents, or to peers).

Military Veterans Mental Health

Though military personnel and veterans can experience the full range of mental health conditions, research suggests they are more likely to be diagnosed with mood and anxiety disorders, including depression, panic, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), as well as anger-related disorders.

Military Suicide

Suicides among military personnel have been steadily rising during the past ten years, with suicide now being the second-leading cause of death among military personnel.

Military Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

PTSD is a stress-related disorder that develops after a traumatic experience.

Helping Children Cope With Divorce

There is a 50/50 chance that couples who marry today will divorce, and almost half of all children now growing up in the United States have seen or will see their parents’ marriage end.

Adolescent and Young Adults With Cancer

The effects of a cancer diagnosis and treatment may be especially upsetting for people diagnosed as adolescents and young adults.

Bed-Wetting

About 15% of all elementary-school-age children wet the bed, and continued bed-wetting beyond the age of 5 is a problem that should be treated.

Aging

The number of Americans age 65 and older is projected to comprise about 20% of the nation’s population by the year 2030.

Adolescent Suicide

Suicide the third leading cause of death for adolescents. Out of every 100 attempts, 1 adolescent will succeed in committing suicide.

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

People with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) have difficulties in sustaining attention to tasks, particularly if they demand more effort than usual.

What is Cognitive Behavior Therapy?

Behavior Therapy and Cognitive Behavior Therapy are types of treatment that are based firmly on research findings. These approaches aid people in achieving specific changes or goals.

Changes or goals might involve:

A way of acting: like smoking less or being more outgoing;
A way of feeling: like helping a person to be less scared, less depressed, or less anxious;
A way of thinking: like learning to problem-solve or get rid of self-defeating thoughts;
A way of dealing with physical or medical problems: like lessening back pain or helping a person stick to a doctor’s suggestions.

Behavior Therapists and Cognitive Behavior Therapists usually focus more on the current situation and its solution, rather than the past. They concentrate on a person’s views and beliefs about their life, not on personality traits. Behavior Therapists and Cognitive Behavior Therapists treat individuals, parents, children, couples, and families. Replacing ways of living that do not work well with ways of living that work, and giving people more control over their lives, are common goals of behavior and cognitive behavior therapy.

How to Get Help

If you are looking for help, either for yourself or someone else, you may be tempted to call someone who advertises in a local publication or who comes up from a search of the Internet. You may, or may not, find a competent therapist in this manner. It is wise to check on the credentials of a psychotherapist. It is expected that competent therapists hold advanced academic degrees. They should be listed as members of professional organizations, such as the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies or the American Psychological Association. Of course, they should be licensed to practice in your state. You can find competent specialists who are affiliated with local universities or mental health facilities or who are listed on the websites of professional organizations. You may, of course, visit our website (www.abct.org) and click on “Find a CBT Therapist”

The Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT) is an interdisciplinary organization committed to the advancement of a scientific approach to the understanding and amelioration of problems of the human condition. These aims are achieved through the investigation and application of behavioral, cognitive, and other evidence-based principles to assessment, prevention, and treatment.