Rational and Irrational Psychopharmacology for Complex Trauma and Dissociative Disorders​

About the Course:

This Webinar, based on the presenter’s 35 years experience with medication management of severely traumatized dissociative individuals, will address the role of psychopharmacology and somatic treatments such as electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in the treatment of patients with complex trauma (CT) and dissociative disorders. (DD), in particular dissociative identity disorder (DID).

Journal/Publisher:

ISST-D

Publication Date:

June 24th, 2016

Author

Richard J. Loewenstein MD (presenter)

About the Author:

Richard J. Loewenstein MD is the founder and Medical Director of The Trauma Disorders Program at Sheppard Pratt Health Systems, Baltimore, MD and Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. The Trauma Disorders Program includes a 22-bed inpatient unit, an outpatient program, a fellowship program, and research, consultation and teaching components. He did a research fellowship at the National Institute of Mental Health in Bethesda, MD. He is the author of over 75 papers and chapters on sleep disorders, consultation-liaison psychiatry, dissociation, dissociative disorders, and trauma disorders. He is a fellow of the International Society for the Study of Dissociation and Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association. He has received numerous awards including the Lifetime Achievement Award of the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation (the organizations highest award). He is an advisor to the longitudinal Treatment of Patients with Dissociative Disorders (TOPDD) Study headed by Bethany Brand, PhD of Towson University. He has over 30 years experience in the diagnosis and treatment of thousands of adults with severe complex trauma and dissociative disorders (CT/DD), particularly those with dissociative identity disorder (DID). Since 1992, he has been attending psychiatrist and team leader on the inpatient Trauma Disorders Unit at Sheppard Pratt Health System. Here he gained extensive experience in the medication management and provision of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) for complex trauma and dissociative disorder patients. In addition, since the early 1980s, he has worked with CT/DD/DID outpatients, either as individual therapist, or as medication manager in collaboration with non-medical therapists. Also, he has extensive experience in the differential diagnosis and management of somatic symptoms and conversion disorders in this patient population, to assess the contribution of medical and/or psychological factors in the somatic symptoms in these patients.

Recommended For:

This course is recommended for health care professionals, especially psychologists and social workers who seek knowledge about psychopharmacological treatment of persons with complex trauma and dissociative disorders. It is appropriate for an intermediate level of participants’ knowledge.

Course Objectives:

1. Assess whether medications work or not in severely traumatized patients who often state that “my meds don’t work”.

2. Identify and address concerns about medications of the person with DID, and those of the self states.

3. Describe the use of Prazosin (Minipress) in the treatment of PTSD symptoms.

4. Provide a more rational informed consent process for medication treatment in severely dissociative patients.