Hello everyone and welcome to this year's Conference Buzz Blog for the 19th Annual IOCDF Conference in Chicago!
First, let me tell you a little bit about me...
My name is Christina and I am the International OCD Foundation’s Social Media Intern for this year's Annual Conference. This is my second year working on the Conference Blog. Last year the blog was about the 2011 Annual Conference in San Diego, and this year it will be about the Annual Conference in Chicago! Here is a little more information about me: I graduated from Endicott College in 2009 with a Bachelor's degree in Psychology and a Minor in Human Services, and in May 2011 received a Masters degree in Counseling Psychology from Northeastern University. While studying at Northeastern, I completed my Pre-Master's Practicum at McLean Hospital's OCD Institute and began to realize that I wanted to specialize in OCD. Under the supervision of Dr. Jason Elias, I started to get involved in OCD research, and am currently working as a Community Mental Health Counselor at the OCD Institute at McLean. I am almost onto my second year of supervision with Denise Egan-Stack, LMHC to work towards my goal of being a Licensed Mental Health Counselor by Spring 2013!
What will we feature in this year's Conference Buzz Blog?
As Social Media Intern here at the IOCDF, I have worked hard interviewing some of the speakers at the 2012 IOCDF Conference for a blog about the Annual Conference. We wanted to do this blog to give people an insider's look at what goes on at the conference, including the workshops and panels, support groups, activities for kids and teens, evening events, fun things to do in Chicago, and more! In addition, we also wanted to give readers a behind-the-scenes glimpse into all that goes into the preparation for the conference here at the IOCDF headquarters in Boston, MA. The IOCDF Annual Conference is a joint effort, and a place where everyone - including patients, families, professionals, and researchers - can collaborate and help one another, so we want everyone to be involved in the process.
Readers of the blog can expect interviews from the speakers of various presentations and workshops at the conference, as well as some insiders from local attractions in Chicago. The interviews will be posted on the blog every Monday and Friday, and will also feature behind the scenes updates about conference planning from the IOCDF staff, tips for tourists and families on vacation, as well as some live blogging from the actual conference in July. You will be able to find the blog on the conference page on the IOCDF Conference website (www.ocfoundation.org/Conference, on our Facebook page and Twitter page, and on the IOCDF homepage.)
For my first blog entry, I will be interviewing Dr. Michael Jenike, chair of the IOCDF's Scientific Advisory Board and speaker for many workshops at the Conference- be sure to check back this Friday to hear from Dr. Jenike! If anyone has any questions or suggestions, please do not hesitate to contact us here at the Foundation- we would love to hear from you. Also, if you are interested in reading about last year's Conference, take a look at the archived entries from the 2011 Conference Buzz Blog on the right-hand side of the blog.
Looking forward to seeing you all in Chicago in July!
-Christina