Conference Buzz

Hi Conference Buzz readers- I hope you had a great week! Today I interviewed David Gooden, LCSW about his involvement with our first-ever Spanish Language Mini-Track at this year’s Conference.

Dave- I see here that you are helping to coordinate the Spanish Language Mini-Track at this year’s Annual Conference. What kinds of workshops and support groups will be included in the Spanish Language Mini-Track?

The Spanish Language Mini-Track is called Introducción a la Ansiedad y el Trastorno Obsesivo- Compulsivo (TOC) en niños y adultos (Introduction to Anxiety and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) in Children and Adults) and will be held on Saturday, July 28 from 2:00 pm - 9:00 pm. Arthur Cantos, Ph.D., Tania Pérez Duarte, and I will be running this program. This program will feature a two-part workshop from 2:00-5:30 pm dedicated to teaching attendees about anxiety disorders and OCD in children and adults, how they are diagnosed and treated, and how to find support and resources. After these workshops, from 5:45-7:00 pm attendees are invited to our Saturday Evening Social (an event that runs during the main Conference) for some refreshments and a light dinner. Following this break, the program will conclude with a support group held entirely in Spanish for those with OCD and their loved ones from 7:30-9:00 pm.

What makes the Spanish Language Mini-Track unique?

This program is unique because they will be done in Spanish. This is the first time the conference has had Spanish language offerings, and we are so excited for this program to have its inaugural year in Chicago.

Tell us a little bit about you, what you currently do, and how you became involved in the OCD community.

I am a Clinical Social Worker who has been specializing in OCD for a little more than 10 years.  I first became involved with OCD treatment when I was asked by a Child Psychiatrist if I was interested in learning the method described by John Marsh, MD in OCD in Children and Adolescents: A Cognitive-Behavioral Treatment Manual.  She said that if I did she had a number of referrals for me.  As someone brand-new to private practice at that time, it was a very exciting opportunity, and I’m still grateful, and not just because I’ve found a niche.  I’ve met so many wonderful people (young and older), people who have inspired me with their courage. 

Although I have had some additional responsibilities for development and coordination of this Mini-Track, I’m only a small part of the bilingual team, with Arthur Cantos, Ph.D. and Tania Pérez Duarte, M.S. Dr. Cantos is a Clinical Psychologist and Professor at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, where he is Director of Clinical Training in addition to his teaching and research responsibilities. He has made many international presentations, in Spain, Mexico, Gibraltar, and Colombia, in addition to the United States, and has authored or co-authored several publications. Ms. Pérez Duarte is a Ph.D. student (Clinical Psychology) and Psychotherapist, specializing in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and is currently assisting the Mexican Consulate in Austin, Texas and OCD Texas, the local IOCDF affiliate.  She has also translated several educational documents for the IOCDF office.

How many conferences have you been to and what is one memorable experience you’ve had?

I have been to 5 IOCDF Conferences, in addition to the Behavioral Therapy Training Institute in Philadelphia. I have treasured every one; I treasure being able to ask the leaders in our field knotty clinical questions and getting very helpful answers.

After taking a look at the Conference schedule, what workshops are you most excited about attending and why?

Which workshops?..Ha!  I’ve circled so many workshops that I want to attend, several at the same time.  “Mr. Monk vs. Mr. Spock—Distinguishing Between OCD and Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder” with Robert Hudak, MD looks irresistible.

Since you are not from the local Chicago area, what are you most excited about doing in Chicago while you are there for the Conference?

My wife (Anne Haney Gooden, LCSW, also an IOCDF member) and I are from Tucson, Arizona.  We are looking forward to seeing the Museum of Natural History, which we both visited in our youth.  She has a lovely memory of a tea garden, which we hope is still there.

That's great- thanks so much for talking with us, Dave! 

Registration for the Spanish Language Mini-Track is $50 per person (children under the age of 15 are free). To register, click here for the Spanish Language Mini-Track registration form. Registrants can complete the registration form and either email it to us as an attachment, fax it, or send it to us in the mail with payment information. You can also register on-site the day of the conference. While this program is intended primarily for those with OCD and their loved ones, professionals can attend as well.

Please forward along information about this program to anyone who you think may be interested in this opportunity. This program will not return to Chicago until at least 2015, so this is an ideal opportunity to make a positive impact on the mental health of your community. 

Have a great Memorial Day weekend!

-Christina

Hi everyone- I hope you all have had a nice day so far. For today’s entry in the Conference Buzz Blog, we will be interviewing Joan Chabrowe, a long-time member of the IOCDF and co-facilitator of one of our Conference support groups.

Joan- What support group during the Conference will you be helping to run? Why do you think Conference attendees should attend your support group?

I will be co-facilitating a support group with Dr. Bruce Hyman, on Friday night, July 27th, from 7:00 to 8:30, for adults who are growing older with OCD, and for anyone interested in issues concerning OCD, Aging and Time. Sometimes it's helpful to look at things through the prism of age and the particular stage of life in which we find ourselves. Aging is a time of significant changes, a time of important decisions and sometimes of increased anxiety. Support groups can offer helpful insights and encouragement, while letting us know that we are not alone in suffering our fears and frustrations.

Tell us a little bit about you, what you currently do, and how you became involved in the OCD community.

I've had OCD since I was a teen, but only got to join the Foundation in 1986, the first year it appeared. Until then, public information and discourse on OCD had been scarce. We were all overjoyed when the IOCDF began to shed its beacon of light and hope. I was a high school English teacher in NYC before retiring to Florida. I still teach privately and pursue my interests with volunteer work. I am interested in being an advocate for older adults with OCD, as I think this is an under-served OCD community, one which could use more support and research. I also think cross-generational dialogues would be helpful to all. Older adults have an abundance of experience and insights to share.

Have you been to an IOCDF Conference before? What are you looking forward to most at this year's Conference?

This is my fifth IOCDF Annual Conference. They've all been mind-opening and exhilarating, and full of the wonderful warmth of sharing. Each conference has strengthened my resolve to keep fighting the good fight and to be inspired by the people who've shared their stories. I am very much looking forward to meeting people I've been corresponding with.

After taking a look at the Conference schedule (located on pages 4-6 in the Conference Registration Brochure and also on the Conference page of the IOCDF website here), what workshops are you most excited about attending and why?

I'm attracted to a number of workshop sessions, including one on perfectionism (my chief nemesis), another on advocacy (which stirs me up), and one or two on the inter-relating of ERP and ACT (something which has helped in my own therapy).

Since you are not from the local Chicago area, what are you most excited about doing in Chicago while you are there for the Conference?

I have never been to Chicago. I am planning on staying extra days in Chicago to do some sightseeing. I wish to see the Art Institute, the downtown architecture, perhaps go on an architectural tour, and if time permits, the science museum. I hope the hotel has a good information desk.

To read more about OCD and Aging, take a look at Joan’s article, OCD, Aging and Time, on pages 16-17 of the Spring 2012 issue of the OCD Newsletter. If you are not already a member of the Foundation and would like to receive the OCD Newsletter, you can go to the Membership page on our website here, or call us at the office at 617-973-5801.

Have a great week!
-Christina

Good afternoon! For today's Conference Buzz Blog entry, I will be interviewing Dr. Michael Jenike, who will be speaking in 3 different workshops at the Conference.

How many talks will you be presenting at this year’s Annual Conference? What is the name of your talk(s) and when is it taking place?

I will be presenting at “Ask The Experts Goes Live!” with Jim Claiborn, PhD on Saturday July 28^th from 11:15 AM-12:45 PM, “Medication: A Question and Answer Session” on Friday July 27^th from 1:45 PM-3:45 PM, and “Sudden Onset OCD in Children: Diagnosis, Treatment, and Therapy for PANDAS with Susan Swedo, MD, Eric Storch, PhD, and Susan Dailey on Friday July 27^th from 4:00 PM-5:30 PM.

What makes your talk(s) unique? Why do you think Conference attendee’s should attend your talk(s)?

I have been presenting the Medication Q & A workshop for over 20 years. It is one of the main treatment updates for OCD. When I was at the IOCDF Conference in Boston in the 1990’s, I actually presented the Keynote Address. After the Keynote, there were many questions from attendees, which ended up taking over 12 hours to answer. I decided that for next year’s conference, I would run a 3-4 hour Medication Q&A, and now the talk is down to 2 hours.

In regards to the PANDAS talk that I am presenting on, there is still so much unknown about infection causing mental illness. I believe that it could be way more common than we had originally thought, in disorders such as anorexia, Tourettes syndrome, and psychosis. In some cases, the person would be diagnosed with strep, and then the next day not being able to go to school, unable to eat, and displaying OCD symptoms. PANDAS research is the most important thing I am involved in right now, and I receive more than 20 emails per day about PANDAS cases. If you treat the OCD with antibiotics it might help with lifelong mental illness- for example, in one of the PANDAS cases I am currently treating, I started the individual on antibiotics and they got increasingly better. From our research so far, we are also seeing that SSRI’s could make PANDAS worse. When I ask adults what they suspect started their OCD, some mention infections.

Tell us a little bit about you, what you currently do, and how you became involved in the OCD community.

I became involved in the OCD community when I was running an Alzheimer’s clinic and I had my first patient with OCD. At first, I thought it was a very rare disorder, but quickly found out how common it really was. I once had a patient in Canada who attempted to commit suicide and shot himself in the head. When he recovered from the gunshot wound, most of his OCD was gone. The producers from Larry King called me and asked me to come on the show with my patient and talk about OCD. After the airing of the show, my secretary was receiving hundreds of calls per day for many weeks about OCD. From then on, I began doing research, and eventually started the OCD Institute at McLean Hospital.

How many conferences have you been to and what is one memorable experience you’ve had?

I have been to every Annual Conference except for 3 or 4. My first Keynote Address was at the Boston Annual Conference in 1995 and it took only 45 minutes, as that was all we knew about OCD at the time. Now, with everything we know about OCD, we could talk for years.

After taking a look at the Conference schedule, what workshops are you most excited about attending and why?

I am going to try to go to the PANDAS presentations, as well as some of the Hoarding talks. As the Chair of the IOCDF Scientific Advisory Board, I have meetings all day long so it is difficult for me to go to workshops. I actually don’t learn the best during lectures, but through readings instead.

Are you traveling to Chicago for the Conference, or are you from the local Chicago area? If you are not from the local Chicago area, what are you most excited about doing in Chicago while you are there for the Conference? If you are local to Chicago, what do you recommend that visitors check out in Chicago during their stay?

I’ve always disliked Chicago due to the outside airport, but at the last IOCDF Conference in Chicago, I was shocked at how beautiful the city really is. I am excited to go to the parks and see all of the other outside attractions the city has to offer.

Thanks for speaking with us, Dr. Jenike! Check back in next week for more interviews with our Conference speakers. Have a great weekend!