Becoming a Military Psychologist is a journey. Regardless of how prepared someone thinks they are, shifting to a life inside the military culture will be somewhat of a shock. Frequently, students deciding whether or not to take this step ask what they need to do to be “best prepared.” In my opinion and experience, the best answer is “be relaxed, and ready for anything.
I am very proud to have worked as a psychologist at the Navy’s Substance Abuse and Rehabilitation Program, also known as SARP. I recall living for my patients, my team and the work; I’m pretty passionate about healing and the recovery process. The following points are some things I believe are important to consider when working with Service members struggling with a drug or alcohol problem. Some seem pretty obvious, but are still worth mentioning in my humble opinion.
I get a lot of flyers for various continuing education opportunities. Some of the workshops sound interesting, but I have to admit, some of them sound…well, a little far-fetched. Let’s just say I skeptically wonder about the credentials of the trainer and whether research supports the content. Potential attendees must often take the trainer’s word about the validity of the training. As a trainer, along with the other CDP faculty members, that leads me to contemplate what I specifically I bring to the table when delivering trainings, and more broadly what we at CDP have to offer. In other words, if you are considering attending a CDP training, why should you take our word for it?
In late 2017, the Department of Veterans Affairs in conjunction with the Department of Defense published an update to their practice guidelines for the management of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). This two-part blog will highlight the major recommendations of the new practice guideline: part 1 will focus on recommendations for screening and assessment and part 2 will focus on treatment considerations. Although we hope that these blogs help to clarify the major elements of the new guideline, we strongly suggest that all clinicians review the guideline for themselves. The full guideline as well as the Clinician Summary and Pocket Guide can all be viewed and downloaded in PDF format here.
In late 2017, the Department of Veterans Affairs in conjunction with the Department of Defense published an update to their practice guidelines for the management of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). This two-part blog will highlight the major recommendations of the new practice guideline: part one will focus on recommendations for screening and assessment and part two will focus on treatment considerations. Although we hope that these blogs help to clarify the major elements of the new guideline, we strongly suggest that all clinicians review the guideline for themselves.