INTENSIVE TREATMENT PROGRAM FOR PANIC DISORDER AND AGORAPHOBIA

OCD Resource Center of Florida

INTENSIVE TREATMENT PROGRAM FOR
PANIC DISORDER AND AGORAPHOBIA

The OCD Resource Center is now offering intensive treatment for panic disorder and agoraphobia. The Intensive Program for Panic Disorder is a designed for patients wishing to make rapid and effective progress overcoming severe and debilitating panic and agoraphobic symptoms. Based upon the cognitive-behavioral program of Barlow and Craske (1988), the program uses state-of-the-art methods of in vivo exposure and cognitive restructuring to assist patients to gain effective control over their panic and agoraphobic symptoms. For more information about panic disorder and agoraphobia, click here.

Structure of the Program

The program is done in three phases: evaluation/psychoeducation, intensive exposure, maintenance and follow-up. The patient meets with their cognitive-behavioral therapist between two and four hours per day for between 10 to 20 days, depending upon the needs of the individual patient. Non-therapy hours are supplemented with extensive reading and home practice assignments.

I - Evaluation/Psychoeducation phase

During this phase, usually lasting between two and four hours, the patient undergoes an extensive evaluation of their panic problem, including history of the problem, previous treatment experiences, medication and medical history. A complete cognitive-behavioral assessment is done for the purpose of generating an intensive treatment strategy designed to effectively control panic and agoraphobic symptoms. The patient is given an in-depth understanding of the nature of panic and agoraphobic symptoms and the cognitive-behavioral components that maintain the symptoms. This phase is completed within the first three days of the program.

II - Intensive Exposure Phase

During this phase, the patient engages in intensive in vivo exposure to feared activities and situations. Cognitive restructuring techniques are also extensively employed. Approximately six sessions lasting between two and four hours per day are held in the naturalistic situations where the symptoms are likely to occur. For example, away from the patient's home, in a shopping mall, an elevator, crowded theater, while driving, etc. Patients will be subjected to increasingly high, but safe levels of discomfort for the purpose of learning that anxiety and panic symptoms need not be feared, and can be effectively controlled through natural means other than through escape or avoidance. At the end of this phase, having acquired the cognitive-behavioral skills to manage feared situations, patients engage in their own exposure work, independent of the therapist. This powerful learning process enables patients to rapidly overcome years of debilitating symptoms that have not responded to more traditional "talk" therapy methods.

III - Maintenance and Follow-up

During this phase the techniques of relapse prevention are taught, including methods of lifestyle and stress management, to better insure the long term management of panic and agoraphobia. To insure a smooth transition post-treatment, follow-up telephone sessions are held once per week for two weeks, then one month later, and six months later. These phone sessions are designed to reinforce treatment gains and monitor patient progress incorporating new found skills into their lives.

Who is Appropriate for the Intensive Treatment Program?

While intensive treatment for panic disorder and agoraphobia can be very helpful to many patients, not all are appropriate for the program. To benefit from this program, patients must:

1. Have primary difficulties avoiding many situations and activities because of the fear of panic attacks.

2. Be willing to undergo rather intense periods of discomfort, including actual panic attacks within the treatment process itself in order to learn more adaptive responses to fear and anxiety.

3. This form of treatment would be inadvisable for persons with certain medical or psychiatric disorders, such as severe depression, bipolar disorder or a history of psychosis. Patients who are actively abusing alcohol or drugs are not appropriate candidates.

4. Those patients who take benzodiazepines (Xanax, Ativan, etc.) and antidepressants (Prozac, Paxil, Luvox, Zoloft, Celexa, Lexapro) must on a stable regimen for a minimum of three months prior to the beginning of treatment.

5. Patients who take benzodiazepines on a PRN (as needed) basis will not be permitted to take them PRN during the duration of the program.

6. All patients must have undergone a medical exam within the past year, or since the onset of their panic symptoms within the past year.

To insure appropriateness, all prospective patients must undergo an initial telephone screening prior to admission to the program.

If you have further questions, click here to contact our office via email. Or call 954-962-6662, Ext. 1. We will forward via mail or email, a complete description of the program plus information on costs and lodging in the Florida area.

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