January 2015
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DIRECTORS' COLUMN

By Seth Warren, PhD

 

Dues: A Consolation 

 

I know this article comes a bit late, when almost all of you have already paid your 2015 annual CPPNJ dues. I want to thank you for your support for the institute. I know how stressful it can be, at the end of the year, when many expenses come due, and many subscriptions and annual dues need to be paid all at once.

 

But, for those of you who have paid your 2015 dues, and to those who yet have to send in their payment, I would like to offer a consolation of sorts, and to support you in your decision to support CPPNJ.

 

Almost all of us belong to numerous professional organizations, societies, institutes, and guilds. We all make choices about how to spend our money, and which organizations to continue to support each year. I know for myself that each year some checks are harder to write than others; I won't name names but obviously I don't mean CPPNJ. The point is that we all have our own priorities and values, and these overlap to varying degrees with the goals and aims and priorities of the various groups to which we belong.

 

I would like to try to make you all feel a little better about the cost of membership with CPPNJ. To do so, I want to make the case that there is something special about CPPNJ, even though I am well aware of the diverse commitments our members have to the larger worlds of psychotherapy, social work, psychiatry, psychology, nursing, and of course, psychoanalysis. sethw

 

I believe that we represent, to a significant degree, the future of psychoanalytically-oriented post-graduate training and practice in the state of New Jersey, one of the most densely populated and affluent states in the United States. Many of us have some connection to institutes in New York City, many of which have long histories and solid national and even international reputations; unlike CPPNJ, some of these institutes have endowments, holdings in real estate, and other financial assets that may secure their future survival. And I am well aware that there are at least two other psychoanalytic training programs in New Jersey, but my shamelessly biased view is that I do not believe they are able to offer the depth and diversity of experiences and training that CPPNJ offers. So a question one might ask oneself is, 'how would it feel if there were one day no such training available in our state?' Yes, it is true that some trainees could once again travel to New York City, or possibly Philadelphia, as they have done in the past. And some of our members could do the same to attend programs, continuing education events, and classes, as many of us also have done in the past.

 

But there is something that cannot be replaced. We represent a tradition spanning more than 30 years of supporting a psychoanalytically-oriented community in the state of New Jersey. We offer opportunities for many who will not or cannot travel to the nearby large cities for training and continuing education. We offer a perspective on psychotherapy to our colleagues and peers in various professions locally, through our professional activities, training, writing, and presenting. We support and sustain a point of view that is increasingly valuable because, like many valuable things, it is becoming increasingly uncommon. Our institute has a significant impact on the larger mental health community in New Jersey, through conferences, programs, workshops and classes. I estimate that our faculty collectively provides somewhere in the ballpark of 150,000 hours of high quality psychotherapy per year, the vast majority of which is conducted with residents of the state of New Jersey.

 

And finally, we represent a local network of friends, acquaintances, colleagues and peers. Of all the functions we serve, the social functions are the most irreplaceable. But this local network of peers is not just a social group. We offer the possibility of helping to make referrals to one another across the state. Our social network - not just virtual, but real - helps each of us to continue to do the kind of clinical work we believe in and value. This is no simple quid pro quo. Personal association and professional connections have always been essential to the model of treatment and training we adhere to: based on the value of a human relationship at the core, personal knowledge of the other, identification and connection with the shared values of the group. Without our community the professional life and culture we all aspire to and benefit from would be terribly diminished across our state.

 

I hope that each of you feels your financial contribution to CPPNJ is meaningful and important. We depend to a very large extent on our member dues, which constitute about one-third of all our revenues. Your dues are highly leveraged by the enormous amount of volunteer work that is done by our members - it is hard to imagine a more cost-effective contribution. And I hope I have helped you feel - as I feel - that we all get our money's worth out of our contributions to CPPNJ, and that it is a worthy cause for each of us to support fully.

CPPNJ Workshop

February 1, 2015  FDU Florham Park 

 

Psychotherapeutic Ethics Beyond Oaths or Codes:

Pursuing Therapeutic Safety From Within the Relationship

 

Presented by Anton Hart, PhD 

 

There are reasons to be dissatisfied with conventional approaches to ensuring that we conduct ourselves ethically when practicing psychotherapy. Neither externally based guidelines-in the form of oaths, codes or held theoretical views-nor internally based structures-in the form of theoretical ideals, values, intentions or beliefs-are sufficiently reliable in the protection of the patient from unintentional harm during the course of treatment. This poses a challenge for how we should think about doing treatment that is both impactful and sufficiently secure. Psychotherapists are always imperfect, always subject to ways of participating in the process that may be harmful for the patient rather than healing. As we are all interpersonally constituted, how we engage, including with our patients, emerges through multiple, reciprocally induced enactments of various sorts, including those that will involve revisiting of past traumas and even the possibility of re-traumatization. Arguably, the question is not if we will hurt in the process of trying to heal, but when. Can a way to reliably mitigate this likelihood be found?             

 

This presentation describes a relational approach to ethical psychotherapeutic practice that emphasizes the psychotherapist's authorization of, and receptivity to, the patient's own capacity to perceive and to express problems in and possible negative impact of the psychotherapeutic relationship. Reflection on both the ethical promises and the pitfalls of current "relational" approaches will be presented. Case material will be used to develop these ideas.

 

Learning Objectives: 

  • Develop recognition of the inherent limitations of oaths, codes and principles in ensuring the ethical practice of psychotherapy, particularly from a psychoanalytic perspective.
  • Acquire an understanding of the aspects of contemporary practice exemplified by "relational" approaches that can be both useful and potentially hazardous in striving for safe and ethical psychotherapeutic stance.
  • Clarify an orientation to psychotherapeutic practice involving the psychotherapist's striving for safety by maintaining a position of being open to the patient's blunt, personal scrutiny and inquiry. 

Anton H. Hart, PhD is a Fellow, Training and Supervising Analyst and Faculty Member of the William Alanson White Institute. He has published on issues of mutuality, psychoanalytic disruption and safety, and is writing a book, to be published by Routledge entitled, Beyond Oaths or Codes: Toward Relational Psychoanalytic Ethics. His areas of interest include psychoanalytic listening, supervision-consultation, and psychoanalytic work with unusual people of all kinds including racial, ethnic, and sexual minorities. He is in full-time private practice in New York City.

 

Click HERE to register for this event

debiroelke
Debi Roelke, PhD 

CPPNJ Child and Adolescent Interest Group 

 

The group meets monthly to discuss readings, clinical issues and future programs. The next meeting of the Child and Adolescent Interest Group will be held on January 30, 2015 in Sarah Sullivan, FDU Florham Park Campus, Madison from 12:15pm-1:45pm. For more information, or to RSVP, please contact Debi Roelke at [email protected]  

 

In addition, those who are unable to attend but would like to join the interest group list serv and be part of the community of child/adolescent clinicians within CPPNJ are welcome to contact Debi as well.

Upcoming 2015 Events

   
March 1, 2015 - CPPNJ Cultural Forum: Listening to New Voices - Presentations by Cheryl Thompson, PhD and Ruth Lijtmaer, PhD - Hartman Lounge, The Mansion, FDU Florham Park Campus, Madison - 1:00pm-4:30pm

March 6, 2015 - CPPNJ Northern Region Networking Meeting - Presentation by Ken Frank, PhD - Details TBA - Metropolitan Club, FDU Metropolitan Campus, Teaneck - 11:00am-1:30pm

March 22, 2015 - CPPNJ Essex/Morris/Union Brunch - Presentation by Eric Sherman, LCSW - From Dead to Alive: Desire, Dissociation and Passion in the Analytic Dyad - Home of Karyn Reader (Randolph) - RSVP to Ellie Muska [email protected] - 11:00am-1:00pm

June 7, 2015 - CPPNJ Graduation and End of Year Celebration - Wyndham Hamilton Park Hotel, Florham Park - 12:00noon-4:00pm

CPPNJ Spring Conference

April 19, 2015 FDU Florham Park 

 

Mindfulness: Tailoring the Practice to the Patient

 

Presented by Ronald D. Siegel, PsyD 

 

Mindfulness-based psychotherapy is the most popular new treatment approach in the last decade-and for good reason. Mindfulness practices hold great promise not only for our own personal development, but also as remarkably powerful tools to augment virtually every form of psychotherapy. Mindfulness is not, however, a one-size-fits-all remedy. Practices need to be tailored to fit the needs of particular individuals. In this workshop you'll first learn how to practice mindfulness yourself, inside and outside of the clinical hour. We'll then explore how to creatively adapt practices to meet the needs of diverse people and conditions, including anxiety, depression, stress-related medical disorders, and interpersonal conflicts.  

 

Objectives:

  • Be able to practice mindfulness yourself.
  • Specify how mindfulness practices can be tailored to the needs of particular types of clients.
  • Describe the core attitude toward experience found in depression and how mindfulness practice can help to transform it.
  • Indicate the mechanisms that maintain anxiety disorders and how these can be altered using mindfulness practice.
  • Specify the core dynamics of chronic pain and other psychophysiological disorders and how mindfulness practice can help in their relief

Ronald D. Siegel, PsyD is an Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychology at Harvard Medical School, where he has taught for over 30 years. He is a long time student of mindfulness meditation and serves on the Board of Directors and faculty of the Institute for Meditation and Psychotherapy. He teaches internationally about the application of mindfulness practice in psychotherapy and other fields, and maintains a private clinical practice in Lincoln, Massachusetts. Dr. Siegel is coauthor of the self-treatment guide Back Sense: A Revolutionary Approach to Halting the Cycle of Chronic Back Pain, which integrates Western and Eastern approaches for treating chronic back pain; coeditor of the critically acclaimed text, Mindfulness and Psychotherapy, now in its 2nd edition; author of a book for general audiences, The Mindfulness Solution: Everyday Practices for Everyday Problems; coeditor of Wisdom and Compassion in Psychotherapy: Deepening Mindfulness in Clinical Practice, with a foreword by the Dalai Lama; and coauthor of the new volume for clinicians, Sitting Together: Essential Skills for Mindfulness-based Psychotherapy. He is also a regular contributor to other professional publications, and is co-director of the annual Harvard Medical School Conference on Meditation and Psychotherapy.

 

Click HERE to register for this event

SPOTLIGHT ON ... CPPNJ Instructor

Martin Silverman, MD

By Debi Roelke, PhD 

 

martysilvermanphoto Marty Silverman talks about why he teaches at CPPNJ:

 

When I was still in grade school, and tutoring other children, I discovered that teaching is a great way to learn.  I continued in high school to tutor, and, in college, I kept the Division I basketball team academically eligible to play. 

 

When I do something, I like to do it well, so I got as much of the best training I could find.  After some training in medicine and surgery, I had training in psychiatry, child psychiatry, adult psychoanalysis, and child & adolescent psychoanalysis.  During my residency, at the University of Rochester, during the halcyon years of John Romano, George Engel, and a slew of wonderful adult and child teachers and supervisors, most of whom were psychoanalysts, I taught medical students, interns, nursing students, and residents who were behind me.  Everyone there was expected to teach others.

 

As I began analytic training, I also began ten years of research in child development under Peter Neubauer at the Child Development Center of the Jewish Board of Guardians, where one of my responsibilities was teaching and supervising social work students .  When I completed my adult analytic training, I was invited to join the faculty at what is now the Institute for Psychoanalytic Education affiliated with NYU School of Medicine.  I have taught there ever since, in the adult and in the child programs, at times as many as four courses a year! 

 

As I was finishing my analytic training, I was recruited to New Jersey.  Not too long after that, Larry Kutash and Steve Dranoff asked me to join with them in establishing CCAPS.  They hounded me until I agreed to be a training analyst and to teach and supervise.  I taught child development for a good number of years, and enjoyed it thoroughly.  When CCAPS merged with IPPNJ to form CPPNJ, I taught child development and then, more recently, the course on Freud and Ego Psychology.  It has been my pleasure to teach bright, eager students hungry for knowledge.  But I have to admit that I do it at least as much because I learn as much or more from the teaching than do the students and because the students teach me.  I long have appreciated Winnicott's dedication of his last book: "To my patients, who have paid to teach me."  Students also teach those who teach them.

 

The greatest pleasure of all is working side by side on the faculty with people who were students of mine in the past!  I am grateful for having had the opportunity to teach them and then to teach alongside them!

INTRODUCING OUR NEW CPPNJ FACULTY MEMBER
Ben Davidman, MD

 

My name is Ben Davidman. I have recently been accepted as a member of CPPNJ. and would like to take a moment to introduce myself. 

   

I am a Psychiatrist and analyst and have lived in Maplewood for the past 10 years with my wife and children. I did my psychiatric training at New York University, and psychoanalytic training at Columbia Psychoanalytic Center for Training and Research.  I've been in private practice in Soho since 2004,  and have now opened a part time practice in Summit. I'm in Summit on Fridays and as that train commute is getting old, will work toward expanding my availability in New Jersey.

   

I have a general adult psychiatry and psychotherapy practice. I have worked with a wide variety of clinical issues with a focus on personality disorders and psychotic conditions and enjoy providing medication management in collaboration with other therapists.  

   

Teaching has been an important part of my professional life.  I have taught Personality Assessment and Treatment Planning at NYU to the 3rd year Psychiatry Residents and Transference Focused Psychotherapy to the the 4th year Residents for several years.  I have also taught Psychoanalytic Technique 2 and Process Classes at Columbia Psychoanalytic Center.  

   

Further information about me is available on my website, nycmentalhealth.com.  If you're interested in collaborating professionally and would like to speak with me further, feel free to call me at 917-710-4728.  

A LOOK AT RECENT CPPNJ EVENTS

CPPNJ HOLIDAY PARTY

January 11, 2015

Holiday Party 2015
Ruth Ross, Arlene Kappraff, Donna Schatten, Meryl Dorf, Stu Nifoussi, Cheryl Nifoussi, Sue Gerstley and Marissa Koziar

 

CPPNJ faculty members, candidates and their spouses gathered to celebrate in the holiday spirit once again, at Giorgio's Restaurant in South Orange, NJ. This year, 88 persons fit comfortably into the setting which provided double the space from the previous 2014 event.

 

BobLauraMana
Bob Levine, Laura Arrue and Mana Levine
EricMarionJanet
Eric Sherman, Marion Houghton and Janet Hoffer
SJJ
Susan Stein, Judy Gurtman and Jan Peters

Guests were free to meet, greet and mingle upon arrival, and there was no let up in the chatter and camaraderie from noon through the duration of the afternoon. A buffet was served, followed by coffee and dessert. Those attending seemed to have a very good time, and conversations gradually turned into goodbyes for now.

  

Sandra Sinicropi and Bob Raymond
Sandra Sinicropi and Bob Raymond
SethDanielSusanMichelle
Seth Warren, Daniel Goldberg, Susan Masluk and Michelle Bauer
JudyJimArtLinda
Judy Gurtman, Jim Garofallou, Art Gurtman and Linda Garofallou

 

 Thank you very much to Madine DeSantis and Cathy Van Voorhees for organizing this lovely event and to everyone who participated. Happy New Year, everyone!

 

Daniel and Roz
Daniel Goldberg and Roz Dorlen
 
GailHarleneGroup
Gail Kleinman and Harlene Goldschmidt
NickIrwin
Nick Papouchis and Irwin Badin

 

 

Reflections on Recent Sex Therapy Presentation
By Susan D. Gerstley, LCSW, MBA 

 

Hope Eliasof - Presenter
On Friday, November 21,2014 Hope Eliasof, LCSW presented to a sold-out audience in Teaneck on the topic, "Integrating Sex Therapy with Psychodynamic Couples' Treatment". 

 

She facilitated a fascinating discussion on the role of sex in relationships

including sexual myths, therapist countertransference and specific techniques to offer to couples to improve their sexual intimacy and satisfaction which has a direct effect on relationship stability.

She shared her clinical experience that many couples successfully reduce conflict by participating in couples' therapy but that this does not necessarily translate into improved sex life. Hope stressed the importance of the therapist taking an active role in initiating exploration of this topic with couples and maintaining a calm and compassionate curiosity to set the tone as partners experience much shame and vulnerability about sexuality.  

 

Distressed relationships result in intensified anger which is a key impediment to sex. She stated that through sexual assessment tools it has been discovered that 90% of people have had some negative sexual experiences. It is critical that couples' therapists provide psychoeducation as well as specific behavioral techniques to assist couples in improving their sexual relationship. Bibliography for suggested readings can be obtained from Cathy Van Voorhees, CPPNJ Administrator.


 Hope's engaging and approachable interactive teaching style incorporated audience member's clinical 
observations into the material creating an exciting dynamic that will allow clinicians to incorporate elements of her presentation immediately into their consultation rooms.  

 

Kudos to Cheryl Nifoussi, CPPNJ Regional Coordinator for arranging this thought provoking event in Northern New Jersey. 

 

Correction

 

We made an error in the November newsletter.  Marty Silverman was reported as having written the paper, " A Dangerous Movie? etc." in response to the film, "A Dangerous Method."  It should have said that it was written by "Ferrell, D., and Silverman, M. A." We apologize for this mistake.

Thank you for joining us. Look for our next newsletter in February 2015. 

No need to print this email - for future reference, all issues are archived.