Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) includes a variety of approaches and therapeutic systems, the most well known of which include cognitive therapy, behavior therapy, rational emotive behavior therapy, and multimodal therapy. Multimodal therapy is a type of CBT that is based on the idea that humans are biological beings who think, feel, act, sense, imagine, and interact. Each of those “modalities” should be addressed in psychological treatment. The multimodal therapy acronym “BASIC I D” signifies behavior, affect, sensation, imagery, cognition, interpersonal relationships, and drugs/biology and is the basis for treatment. Various types of cognitive behavior therapies such as Trauma-Focused CBT are valuable when working with child and adolescent disaster survivors. Relaxation training is a cognitive behavioral adjunct that is helpful for anxiety reduction.

Interpersonal Therapy (IPT) is time-limited and employs homework, structured interviews, and assessment tools. It focuses on the interpersonal context (rather than intrapsychic) and on building interpersonal skills. IPT may change the client’s interpersonal behavior by promoting adjustment to current interpersonal roles and conditions. Similar to other counseling and psychotherapy, crisis interventions include assessment that is ongoing throughout the intervention process. The dissimilarities of crisis interventions, however, include the persistent emphasis on problem-solving techniques as well as safety assessment.

To prepare for this assignment:

• Review Chapter 7 in your course text, Crisis Intervention Strategies, and think about the potential scope of impact a crisis may have on people suffering from PTSD.
• Review Chapters 10 in your course text, Crisis Intervention Strategies,and think about how special populations and/or substance abuse might require additional attention when PTSD is involved.
• Review the types of responses to trauma, including but not limited to responses to PTSD.
• Review this week’s media, During a Crisis-Counselor Interventions and Strategies, paying particular attention to Dr. Berger’s presentation on differences between military and civilian trauma reactions.
• Review the article, “Responsive Therapy and Motivational Interviewing: Postmodernist Paradigms,” and consider the benefits of motivational interviewing.
• Review the article, “Best Practices for Counselors Who Treat Posttraumatic Stress Disorder,” and think about ways these best practices could fit into the implementation of CBT and IPT.
• Review the article, “The Treatment and Prevention of Depression: Implications for Counseling and Counselor Training,” and consider how you might teach this information to make it useful for counselor educators and in crisis training.
• Review the article, “Psychosocial and Moral Development of PTSD-Diagnosed Combat Veterans,” and think about whether this information transfers to civilian populations too.
• Review the literature to support CBT and IPT techniques for use with survivors of crises suffering from such illnesses as PTSD, depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, and substance abuse.

The assignment: (4–6 pages)

• Briefly describe two CBT and two IPT evidenced-based practice strategies that may be applied to working with crisis survivors.
• Then explain how these strategies might be changed if the crisis survivor was diagnosed with PTSD prior to the current trauma.
• Finally, provide a brief analysis of how your intervention strategies for persons with PTSD might differ if you were working with military personnel rather than civilians. Give specific examples.