At the May meeting, Dr. Paula Zeanah presented her work developing The Sexual Self-Esteem Inventory.

When she began working on the measure, much of the literature focused on the sexual activities and sexual abuse of teens; little focused on healthy sexual development, especially in women. Dr. Zeanah explained she conceptualized sexual self-esteem in teens as being based on 1) skills/experience, 2) attractiveness, 3) control, 4) moral judgment, and 5) adaptiveness. She reviewed research on the reliability and validity of the measure, as well as the updated research from the US and abroad. Research continues, and the measure is still listed in the Handbook of Sexuality-Related Measures (4th ed.).

You can learn more about Dr. Zeanah and about her scholarly work.

The March meeting featured Dr. Tracy Carlson presenting on the basics of sex therapy. She covered the history of sex therapy from Freud, to Kinsey, to Masters and Johnson. She discussed modern research that has changed our understanding of sex therapy since the days of Masters and Johnson (including work on the female sexual response cycle). She presented on the typical practice and models guiding of sex therapists today. Dr. Carlson closed with several points on AASECT certification, and readings and resources for professionals.

Dr. Carlson is originally from North Dakota (You betcha)! She completed a doctoral minor through the Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender, and Reproduction. As part of her training, she completed a pre-doctoral internship at the New Orleans Southeast Louisiana Veteran Health Care System in August 2013.

After earning her doctorate in Counseling Psychology from Indiana University-Bloomington (IU), she finished a two-year research and clinical postdoctoral fellowship through the Institute for Sexual and Gender Health (ISGH) at the University of Minnesota. She became a Certified Sex Therapist through the American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors and Therapists (AASECT) in 2017. Dr. Carlson fell in love with New Orleans during her doctoral internship and wanted to come back! She was very excited to move back to New Orleans to work as an Assistant Professor through LSU’s Family Medicine Department in 2017.

Dr. Carlson decided to pursue private practice in the beginning of March 2020 and is currently providing psychotherapy and sex therapy via telehealth. She is in the process of growing a group practice through Connections Psychotherapy and Wellness. Her clinical interests include sexual health, genital/pelvic pain disorders, impulsive/compulsive sexual behavior, consensual non-monogamy, couples communication, and sexual communication comfort.

The September meeting was hosted at the home of Dr. Any Henke, who was also our guest speaker. Dr. Henke is a licensed clinical psychologist who practices at Children’s Hospital. She is also the Clinical Director of The Balance Collective, Louisiana’s first and only specialty clinic providing Family Based Treatment for Eating Disorders. She is also a former Louisiana State Board of Examiners of Psychologists Board Member and a current Director on the Executive Council of the Louisiana Psychological Association.

In her talk, Dr. Henke focused on the newest diagnostic criteria for eating disorders, as well as the current research on efficacious assessment and treatment with eating disorders. She gave special attention to Family Based Treatment for Eating Disorders (see some of the research here and a discussion of family treatment for eating disorders here). She noted this model of treatment does not blame parents for the problem, and instead focuses on empowering them to play a critical role in their teen’s healing and recovery. Dr. Henke also explained how clinicians can assess readiness for this kind of treatment with their own clients, as well as support this kind of treatment as the referring clinician.

The July meeting was hosted at the home of Dr. Matthew Holcomb, and our guest speaker was Dr. Erin Reuther. She is a past-president of the Louisiana Psychological Association, and has chaired the Legislative & Governmental Affairs Committee for LPA for the past four years. She is a licensed and board-certified clinical psychologist. She graduated from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, and completed her internship at the University of Florida-Shands Hospital working with inpatient and outpatient pediatric and adult clients with psychological and medical illnesses. Prior to her current position, Dr. Reuther was a faculty at LSU Health Sciences Center and began the trauma psychology consultation-liaison service there. Currently she works at Children’s Hospital New Orleans. While she treats a range of child and adolescent issues, both inpatient and outpatient, her particular expertise is chronic pain and child trauma.

During her talk, Dr. Reuther reviewed the frequency of migraines in children (8-10%), as well as various common comorbid symptoms (e.g., vomiting and abdominal pain). She noted that only half of the children/teens with migraines referred for psychological treatment actually see a psychologist. This is unfortunate because cognitive-behavioral therapy focused on managing stress and improving sleep, hydration, and diet is more effective treatment than simple treatment with medications. Supporting this, she cited the CHAMP Study (read a discussion here and a follow-up study here). Dr. Reuther discussed good “headache hygiene,” and how to effectively work with children/teens and their families to improve the client’s daily functioning and quality of life.

Due to the COVID quarantining, it had been a while since CCAPS met. The leadership of CCAPS decided to reboot the regular CCAPS meetings with a Spring Holiday Party at Hyams Fountain Gardens at Audubon Park.

The January meeting was hosted at the home of Dr. John Fanning, and our guest speaker was Dr. Joe Mather, a functional medicine physician. He is a board certified family practice physician. He graduated from Tulane University School of Medicine and Tulane University School of Public Health in 2011, and completed his family medicine residency in 2014. While completing his master’s degree, he traveled to Malaysia to conduct infectious disease research, which led to his interest in the role of intestinal infections and their impact on one’s health. His clinical experience includes working in a rural New Zealand clinic, being medical director of an Urgent Care clinic, and working as a concierge physician at the Center for Longevity and Wellness. Dr. Mather strives to deliver evidence-based, individualized, functional medicine to his patients in his practice in Metairie. He has specific interests in helping patients recover from complex chronic disease as well as helping patients to optimize their health and longevity.

Dr. Mather explained that research is revealing how important a healthy gut is to mental and cognitive health. Various strategies to improve gut health can have a major impact on improving cognitive symptoms. One important condition––intestinal permeability (commonly called “leaky gut”)––occurs when the cells lining the gastrointestinal tract become damaged, allowing bacteria, toxins, and various substances to activate the immune system. This activation can lead to various cognitive symptoms such as “brain fog,” difficulty focusing, and problems with memory. Dr. Mather focused on the tools and strategies that he finds helpful to improve the cognitive health of his patients.

A CCAPS member suggested those who wish to read more can consult The Microbiome Menagerie (or here).

Our annual holiday gathering was held at the home of Dr. Carolyn Weyand. The night included socializing and interesting conversation, as well as a feast!

We held a brief business meeting, and thanked Dr. Elaine Salzer for her service as past president, and Dr. Gail Gillespie for her work this year as president. Dr. Gillespie now becomes past president, and Dr. John Fanning assumed his duties as the new CCAPS president. There was discussion and a vote on the new officers, including Dr. Matthew Holcomb who is the president-elect, and Dr. Christiane Creveling who is the new secretary-treasurer.

The July meeting was hosted at the home Dr. Kim VanGeffen, and our moderator was our President-Elect Dr. John Fanning.

Dr. Fanning moderated discussion of and consultation around general practice issues, as well as special concerns related to working in New Orleans. CCAPS members raised concerns, asked questions, and offered advice for colleagues.

The July meeting was hosted at the home of Dr. Elaine Salzer, and our guest speaker was our President-Elect Dr. John Fanning. He earned his Ph.D. in clinical psychology at the University of Memphis in 1983, after having earned his bachelor’s degree at Texas Tech University, and his master’s degree at Stephen F. Austin State University. He completed his internship at the New Orleans VA Medical Center. He currently is in private practice, focusing on clinical neuropsychology and clinical psychology, and working in brain injury rehabilitation and neuropsychological assessment as his primary practice areas. He is a past-president of the Louisiana Psychological Association, as well as the New Orleans Neuropsychological Society.

Dr. Fanning explained that given the increasing proportion of the population in older age groups, the neurocognitive disorders of later life – particularly Alzheimer’s disease – have become critically important mental health and public health challenges. As evidence-based practitioners, we must use the research to develop interventions for these disorders, which affect a third or more of people in their eighties and beyond. However, developments in recent years have led researchers to realize that actually we know less than we thought about Alzheimer’s disease. As a result, we find ourselves rethinking and re-evaluating the critical issues involving etiology, treatment and research approaches. He traced the development of past research ideas, reviewed the effectiveness of tested interventions, and discussed some of the new areas currently being investigated.