Generalized Anxiety Disorder Across the Lifespan

Foreword by John H. Riskind. Preface.-1. Nature of Generalized Anxiety Disorder.-2. Assessment and Diagnosis. DSM-IV-TR: Diagnostic Criteria for Generalized Anxiety Disorder.-3. Conceptual Models. Beck's Model. Barlow's Emotion Theory. Cognitive Avoidance Theory of Worry. Riskind's Model of Looming Vulnerability. The Role of Intolerance of Uncertainty. Metacognitive Model.-4. Psychosocial Treatments for Adults with Generalized Anxiety Disorder. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). Metacognitive Therapy. Supportive-Expressive Psychodynamic Therapy. Integrative Psychotherapy. Emotion Regulation Therapy. Acceptance-Based Behavior Therapy.-5. Pharmacotherapy for Generalized Anxiety Disorder. Genetics. Neurobiology. Medications used for Generalized Anxiety Disorder.-6. Special Populations. Children and Adolescents. Clinical Presentation. Assessment and Diagnosis. Psychosocial Treatments. Pharmacological Treatments. Older Adults. Clinical Presentation. Assessment and Diagnosis. Psychosocial Treatments. Pharmacological Treatments.-7. Enigmas and Paradoxes. Prevention. Cultural Considerations. Treatment Resistant Generalized Anxiety Disorder.-8. Future Directions and Recommendations.-Final Remarks.Appendix A: Assessment Tools for Adults and Older Adults. Appendix B: Assessment Tools for Children and Adolescents.

Michael E. Portman, DPhil, LISW-S, has worked as a full-time staff clinical social worker at the Cleveland Veteran's Administration. He provided individual and group therapy to a patient population consisting of veterans with severe mental disorders. He was also an adjunct faculty member at Case Western Reserve University, Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences, and maintained a private practice specializing in the treatment of mood and anxiety disorders, especially Generalized Anxiety Disorder, for ten years. In addition to his clinical experience, Dr. Portman received a Doctorate of Philosophy in Social Work from The University of South Africa, a MSW from The Ohio State University, and a M.A. in Psychology from The New School for Social Research. He is currently setting up a private practice in Israel, where he now lives with his family.Dr. Portman was also recently featured in an article in The Jerusalem Post. Check out an excerpt below:

"A leading US expert on CBT and its use for treating phobias, obsessions and general anxiety disorder (GAD) came on aliya from Ohio in May and settled with his wife Riva and children in Jerusalem. Dr. Michael Portman (meport18@gmail.com), a psychologist and social worker whose textbook on GAD (Generalized Anxiety Disorder Across the Lifespan) was published not long ago by Springer, and his article on the subject was printed in Psychiatric Annals. Both were widely praised by mental health professionals. The family thus joins his father, a retired obstetrician/gynecologist, and his mother, an artist, who moved to the capital 12 years ago. "  (article by Judy Siegel-Itzkovich, November 20, 2011)

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http://www.jpost.com/Health/Article.aspx?id=246216

From the reviews:

"In this clearly written volume, Michael Portman has succeeded in effectively applying his clinical experience and outstanding grasp of the conceptual and empirical literature to the understanding and treatment of Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD). He brings a well-honed sensibility to the treatment of this recalcitrant condition that is at once open-minded, empirically-based, integrative and compassionate. Covering psychopharmacological, cognitive behavioral, psychodynamic and other treatments as applied to children, adolescents, adults and the elderly, the author correctly emphasizes the need to tailor a pure or integrated treatment to the individual case based on the empirical evidence available and the clinician's judgment. One comes away from reading this splendid book exceedingly well informed about the best that the field has to offer those suffering from GAD." -Stanley B. Messer, PhD, Professor II and Dean, Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology, Rutgers University"In comparison to other anxiety disorders, Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) was, for a long time, a neglected topic in psychiatric research in spite of being one of the most common and frequently disabling conditions. Perhaps the absence of dramatic symptoms, such as panic attacks and phobias, and the frequent comorbidity with other disorders that made its formulation difficult, led researchers to ignore GAD and to examine easier targets. Fortunately, recent studies corrected these omissions. In this book, Portman brings us up-to-date with the research that has firmly established GAD as a separate disorder. In an extensive review of the literature, he discusses various concepts of GAD, the attempts of defining and measuring the disorder and of quantifying its severity. Separate chapters describe the development and effectiveness of psychosocial and psychopharmacologic treatments in the general as well as in special GAD populations. Finally, this new