Mind-Brain-Gene: Toward Psychotherapy Integration

335 Pages·2019·4.94 MB·English

by  John Arden

ADVANCE ACCLAIM
“The evolution of psychotherapy points toward integration and this book leads the way.”
—Bill O’Hanlon, featured Oprah author of Do One Thing Different
“This book provides a quantum leap into understanding how the interactions of brain, mind, and body, in an
ever-changing environment, determine the meaning and quality of our existence. The inevitable results of
contemplating this mind-altering synthesis is to live life more fully while positively affecting the lives of
others. Everyone who cares about mental and physical health owes a huge debt of gratitude to John Arden
for this brilliant contribution to the science of well-being.”
—Harvey Milkman, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus, Metropolitan State University of Denver, Author of
Craving for Ecstasy and Natural Highs, Fulbright Scholar, Reykjavik University, Iceland “The
discovery of interactions between the mind, brain, and our genes is constantly being developed. It is critical
for health professionals to have a complete overview of the current research within this field. John Arden’s
book is an excellent source of scientific summaries and therapeutic implications. It points towards the
psychotherapy of the 21st century.”
—Anna Leybina, Ph.D., Director, Centre for International and Regional Projects at Civil Service and
Personnel Directorate, Moscow Government
“John Arden has very creatively and in simple language represented the complex multi-directional causal
relationships that explain the vast field of psychoneuroimmunology and epigenetics, along with cognitive
dynamics, that provide an integrated psychotherapy approach. The simple language of the book makes it
easy to comprehend and apply the information in the field of therapy. Each student of health psychology
and practitioners of psychotherapy must read this book to get this holistic perspective.”
—Sanjeev Sahni, Ph.D., Director of the Institute of Behavioral Sciences, O. P. Jindal Global
University, India
The Norton Series on Interpersonal Neurobiology Louis Cozolino, PhD, Series Editor
Allan N. Schore, PhD, Series Editor, 2007–2014
Daniel J. Siegel, MD, Founding Editor The field of mental health is in a tremendously exciting
period of growth and conceptual reorganization. Independent findings from a variety of
scientific endeavors are converging in an interdisciplinary view of the mind and mental well-
being. An interpersonal neurobiology of human development enables us to understand that the
structure and function of the mind and brain are shaped by experiences, especially those
involving emotional relationships.
The Norton Series on Interpersonal Neurobiology provides cutting-edge, multidisciplinary
views that further our unprderstanding of the complex neurobiology of the human mind. By
drawing on a wide range of traditionally independent fields of research—such as neurobiology,
genetics, memory, attachment, complex systems, anthropology, and evolutionary psychology—
these texts offer mental health professionals a review and synthesis of scientific findings often
inaccessible to clinicians. The books advance our understanding of human experience by finding
the unity of knowledge, or consilience, that emerges with the translation of findings from
numerous domains of study into a common language and conceptual framework. The series
integrates the best of modern science with the healing art of psychotherapy.
A NORTON PROFESSIONAL BOOK
MIND–BRAIN–GENE

Toward Psychotherapy Integration
JOHN B. ARDEN
Foreword by Louis Cozolino
NOTE TO READERS: Standards of clinical practice and protocol change over time, and no technique or
recommendation is guaranteed to be safe or effective in all circumstances. This volume is intended as a
general information resource for professionals practicing in the field of psychotherapy and mental health; it
is not a substitute for appropriate training, peer review, and/or clinical supervision. Neither the publisher
nor the author can guarantee the complete accuracy, efficacy, or appropriateness of any particular
recommendation in every respect.
Dedicated to the countless healthcare professionals who have
committed their lives to helping the millions of traumatized refugees.
Contents
Foreword
Acknowledgments
Introduction
ONE
“SELF”-ORGANIZATION
TWO
THE SOCIAL SELF
THREE
BEHAVIOR-GENE INTERACTIONS
FOUR
THE BODY-MIND AND HEALTH
FIVE
SELF-MAINTENANCE
SIX
MOTIVATION, HABITS, AND ADDICTION
SEVEN
STRESS AND AUTOSTRESS
EIGHT
THE TRAUMA SPECTRUM
NINE
TRANSCENDING RIGIDITY
TEN
MIND IN TIME
References
Index
Foreword
As we move deeper into the 21st century, we carry with us a wealth of data,
theoretical knowledge, and new technologies unimaginable just a few short years
ago. As a result, we are moving past the linear logic and simplistic nature-
nurture debates so prevalent during the 20th century. We now find ourselves
thinking in terms of complexity, self-organizing systems, and the synergistic
interactions of mind, brain, genes, and culture that create all living systems and
give rise to human experience. These new discoveries are important scientific
advancements that are leading us to a deeper and hopefully more accurate
understanding of mental health and mental illness. It is my pleasure to welcome
Mind–Brain–Gene into the Norton Series in Interpersonal Neurobiology as part
of this important movement.
In this new book, John Arden takes a long stride forward in articulating an
emerging model of clinical theory, case conceptualization, and therapeutic
practice that attempts to integrate these new scientific findings into clinical
practice. Multiple areas of research from genetics, epigenetics, and neuroscience,
to attachment, development, and psychoneuroimmunology have demonstrated
the complex interconnection taking place between our minds, brains, and genes
during lifelong adaptation and change. While many are overwhelmed by the
complexity of these multiple fields and retreat to narrow definitions of “how to”
modes of therapy, Dr. Arden takes on these challenges with interest, enthusiasm,
and compassion.
Mind–Brain–Gene is a wake-up call for those who think that knowing how
to use a specific technique is enough to be an effective psychotherapist. Being a
psychotherapist is far more than following a manual, assigning homework, or
applying one technique. It is grounded in careful observation, active listening
and learning to ask the right questions. It is knowing and being able to creatively
utilize relevant information from an array of scientific disciplines. Finally, all of
these things need to be grounded in an existential engagement with our clients
fueled by curiosity, caring, and compassion. You will find all of these qualities
embodied and expressed in Dr. Arden’s examples and case studies. You will
notice that while his thinking is sophisticated, his interactions and interventions
are straightforward and altogether human. Knowing how to communicate with
clients is just as important as having the right answers.
This book is being published at an interesting time in our field. On the one
hand, advances in neuroscience and epigenetics are making it clear that
psychotherapy is a powerful intervention. We are learning that the nature and
quality of relationships throughout life have the ability to trigger epigenetic
processes that alter gene expression in ways that can both help and hurt us. We
also know that brains are adaptational processes, hubs of energy and information
that can be significantly altered within healing relationships. Psychotherapy is
clearly a deeply biological intervention, as well as a social and emotional one,
central to the fabric of the human life. Despite what many medical professionals
believe and what insurance companies profess to support their bottom lines,
psychotherapy is not a second class or subordinate form of treatment. It is
relevant, powerful, and makes a difference in the lives of untold numbers of
people.
On the other hand, the field of psychotherapy is moving in the direction of
being “paraprofessionalized” and almost anti-intellectual. An ever-growing
number of training programs march students through a list of antiquated
academic courses, send them to practicums where they are undertrained, and
socially promoted rather than rigorously evaluated. Our clients are people in
need and psychotherapy is a powerful treatment modality that needs to be taken
more seriously both by society and the field of mental health.
In Mind–Brain–Gene, Dr. Arden is challenging us to think more broadly,
more deeply, and in a more complex manner about the factors that contribute to
human health throughout life and across the generations. He is summoning us to
open our eyes to the broader horizons of human experience in which we and our
clients live and to bring this knowledge to bear in our thinking and work. Dr.
Arden is also inviting us to consider new ways of thinking and to not be
frightened by what we don’t know or find difficult to understand. My hope, and
most likely his, is that this expanded knowledge and way of thinking will lead us
to more inclusive case conceptualizations, accurate diagnoses, and efficacious
treatments.