Treating Psychosis ─ A Clinician's Guide to Integrating Acceptance & Commitment Therapy, Compassion-Focused Therapy & Mindfulness Approaches Within the Cognitive Behaviora

Treating Psychosis is an evidence-based treatment manual for mental health professionals working with individuals who experience psychosis, a serious form of mental illness that causes delusions, hallucinations, and thought disorders. Psychosis is usually associated with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and severe depression. This is the first professional book to use a compassionate, mindful approach to treating psychosis using acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) and compassion-focused therapy (CFT). The book provides clinicians with a pre-treatment overview and treatment implementation strategies, and focuses on developing a realistic action plan for treating patients with psychosis, as well as maintaining wellness.

Nicola P. Wright, PhD, CPsych, is a clinical psychologist in the schizophrenia program of the Royal Ottawa Health Care Group (ROHCG), as well as former chief of psychology of the ROHCG, and former director of training for the ROHCG Psychology Residency Program. She engages in individual and group therapy integrating acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), mindfulness, and compassion focused approaches in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for people who experience psychosis. Wright is a clinical professor in the psychology department at The University of Ottawa, and a lecturer with the school of medicine at The University of Ottawa. In addition, she has been an active staff supervisor with the Beck Institute of Cognitive Therapy and Research. She was former president of the Canadian Council of Professional Psychology Programs, and served on both the accreditation, and the education and training committees of the Canadian Psychological Association. She is a founding member of the Canadian Association of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. Wright is the principle investigator of two University of Ottawa medical research fund grants on group cognitive behavioral therapy for psychosis (CBTp). She conducts training workshops and presents internationally on integrating compassion, mindfulness and acceptance and commitment based approaches in CBTp. Wright believes passionately in an empowering approach to working with those who experience psychosis. She lives in Ottawa, Canada.

Owen Kelly, PhD, graduated from Carleton University with a specialization in behavioral neuroscience and completed a post doctoral re specialization in clinical psychology at Fielding Graduate University. He is a clinical psychologist at the Royal Ottawa Health Care Group anxiety disorders program, as well as the Ottawa Institute of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy where he is in private practice. He is currently an adjunct research professor in the department of neuroscience, and lecturer in the department of psychology at Carleton University. Prior to undertaking his clinical work he was a scientist at the University of Ottawa, Institute of Mental Health Research. His professional and clinical interests include provision of both individual and group cognitive behavior therapy. Kelly’s research has focused primarily on appraisal and coping processes as well as outcomes related to cognitive behavioral interventions for psychosis. Kelly resides in Ottawa, Canada.

Dave Davies, PhD, CPsych, received his doctorate in psychology from Queen’s University in Kingston, Canada. He is a clinical psychologist at the Royal Ottawa Health Care Group (ROHCG) anxiety disorders program, director of training for the ROHCG psychology residency program, clinical professor in the school of psychology at the University of Ottawa, and lecturer in the department of psychiatry at the University of Ottawa. Davies is a founding member of the Canadian Association of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. He currently holds two research grants with the University of Ottawa’s medical research fund (on group CBT for Voices and a virtual reality intervention for Social Anxiety). His professional interests include: the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of individuals who experience anxiety disorders and related conditions; the development and evaluation of group based treatment approaches for anxiety and psychosis; and the education and supervision of fellows, residents, and students in the practice of cognitive behavioral therapy. Davies lives in Ottawa, Canada.

Andrew M. Jacobs, PsyD, CPsych, received his PsyD in clinical psychology from the Virginia Consortium Program in Clinical Psychology: College of William & Mary, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk State University, and Old Dominion University, and completed a postdoctoral fellowship in anxiety disorders at McMaster University / St