Mind-body Health and Young Children

Today’s podcast, Mind-body Health and Young Children, is a conversation between Dr. Howard Gurr and Dr. Ilana Palgi, regarding mind body health and young children. Dr. Palgi discusses her use of yoga with young children and the program she developed for use in pre-schools and primary grade programs.

Dr. Ilana Palgi is a Licensed Psychologist and New York State Certified School Psychologist working at The Kramer learning Center in New York and she also has a private practice with children, adults, and families in Manhattan. Dr. Palgi is a registered yoga teacher.

Dr. Palgi’s past research was on the development of self-regulation in early childhood and she studied the impact of yoga in children with special needs through a Participatory Action Research study. In addition, she has several years of experience creating and implementing preschool yoga programs for children with special needs and those on a typical course of development.

Dr. Palgi can be contacted by telephone 917-502-3749, email her at drpalgi@gmail.com, or you can learn more about her program at her website: www.growingchildyoga.com.

A Mind Body Approach to Coping with Pain

In today’s podcast, A Mind Body Approach to Coping with Pain, Dr. Howard Gurr talks with Dr. Jennifer Wolkin, who is an expert in the mind body connection and the management of pain and stress.

Dr. Jennifer Wolkin earned a PhD in Clinical Psychology with a Health Psychology focus from Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine/Yeshiva University. She went on to complete an internship at Mount Sinai Medical Center, and a post-doctoral residency at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center/Harvard Medical School.

Dr. Wolkin has extensive training in the neuropsychological assessment and therapeutic feedback/remediation of traumatic brain injury patients and patients with various neurological and/or neurodevelopmental difficulties. Dr. Wolkin provides neuropsychological and psychological (pre/post-surgical) assessment services, non-surgical/pharmacological pain management adjunctive therapies, and general psychotherapy.

Dr. Wolkin is currently an adjunct professor at New York University undergraduate College of Arts and Sciences and has a faculty appointment as Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology at New York University Langome Medical Center. She is also an Attending Clinical Psychologist at the New York University Langome Medical Center at the Center for the Study and Treatment of pain. Dr. Wolkin is also in private practice at Long Island Neuropsychological Services, Long Island, New York.

Psychology and the Latino Community

This podcast deals with "Psychology and the Latino Community" and is a dialog between Felícitas Kort and Dr. Howard Gurr.

Felícitas Kort moved to New York City about a year ago. She was originally from Venezuela where she was a professor of Behavior and Cognitive Therapy in Caracas, Venezuela, Central University and an experienced clinician of Behavior and Cognitive Therapy. While in Venezuela, Felicitas produced and hosted her own a radio talk show for 6 years called “HABITS AND INHABITANTS”. On her show, she interviewed professionals, families, youth, and children with the purpose of disseminating various disorders in clinical psychology. Besides her own show, she was frequently interviewed by print and by the media (TV and radio) in Venezuela. Felicitas was awarded a Grant by the USA Agency for International Development for a project entitled A TRUCE FOR VENEZUELANS: A PRELIMINARY PROGRAM FOR THE PREVENTION OF VIOLENCE, which included 12 Radio Programs and 4 TV spots.

In addition, Felicitas published six books in Spanish on mental health issues including:

• Manual of Emotions (Manual de Emociones)
• Introduction to Behavior and Cognitive Therapy (Introducción a la Psicoterapia Conductual y Cognitiva)
• Behavior Therapy for Children (Psicologia del Comportamiento Infantil)
• Behavior Therapy Techniques ( Técnicas Terapeúticas Aplicadas a la Conducta)
• Clinical Behavior Therapy (Psicología Clínica Behaviorista)
• Group Psychotherapy (Psicoterapia de grupo) (5th edition)

Felicitas is an Associate Member of the American Psychological Association, Associate Member of the New York State Psychological Association, International Member of the Association for the Advancement of Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies New York, President of the Venezuelan Association of Behavior Therapy, Chairman of the Board of the Venezuelan Association of Psychotherapy, ex Vice-president of the Latin American Association of Analysis and Behavior Modification, Peru, Member of the Venezuelan Federation of Psychologists Venezuela, International.

Weight Management

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Once considered a problem of the wealthy, being overweight or obese now is prevalent in low- and middle-income countries. According to the World Health Organizations 2005 worldwide studies approximately 1.6 billion adults (age 15+) were overweight, at least 20 million children under the age of 5 years were overweight, and at least 400 million adults were considered obese. The World Health Organization projected if there are no changes in our thinking and behaviors that by 2015, approximately 2.3 billion adults will be overweight and more than 700 million will be considered obese. Locally, The Center for Disease Control estimated that in 2009 In New York state 24% of adults met the definition for obesity. We know that statistically speaking people who are overweight are more prone to medical problems such as:

• Heart disease and stroke.

• High blood pressure.

• Diabetes.

• Cancer.

• Gallbladder disease and gallstones.

• Osteoarthritis.

• Gout.

• Breathing problems, such as sleep apnea and asthma.

This podcast is a conversation with Dr. Bornali Basu and Dr. Celeste Rivera on helping individuals learn to control their weight and improve their health.

Bornali Basu, Ph.D. (above left) is a licensed psychologist and maintains a private practice specializing in mind/body-informed treatment for stress reduction and adjustment to chronic illness, as well as mindfulness-based approaches to relieve depression and anxiety. She is on the clinical faculty of NYU School of Medicine where she holds teaching and supervisory responsibilities. Dr. Basu has presented widely and offers lectures and workshops on stress reduction and wellness at multiple venues including corporations, community agencies and educational institutions.

Celeste Rivera, Ph.D. (above right) is a licensed clinical psychologist with multiple interests and areas of practice. She has a private practice in New York City where she provides individual and couple’s psychotherapy from a holistic, mind-body focused perspective. She also devotes part of her time to doing clinical work with the elderly in long term care facilities. Dr. Rivera is a Clinical Instructor for the NYU Medical Center Psychiatry Department where she supervises clinicians who are training in family therapy. In addition to her work as a psychotherapist, Dr. Rivera does executive coaching work and is a member of the Institute of Coaching Professional Association.

Sex Therapy

This podcast is a conversation between Dr. Howard Gurr, the co-host of “Psychology and You”, and Dr. Peter Kanaris on sex therapy.

Dr. Kanaris holds a doctorate in Clinical Psychology. He is a N.Y.S. licensed psychologist and the American Association of Sex Educators, Counselors, and Therapists certifies him as a Diplomate of Sex Therapy. He is a graduate Post-Doctoral Fellow of the Albert Ellis Institute in NYC where he served as a senior clinician, training supervisor and faculty member

Dr. Kanaris currently serves as the Public Education Campaign Coordinator for the New York State Psychological Association. He has been the featured guest on many live interviews and call-in television and radio programs where he has discussed a variety of topics including relationships and sexuality. He has been interviewed in numerous major newspaper and national magazine columns and feature articles in the areas of family, parenting, sexuality and mind body health.

Dr. Kanaris is also the co-host of an educational video series “Psychology and You”. He has written for the Health Page for FHM (For Him Magazine) where he responded to questions on sexuality and intimacy. He has presented at the American and New York State Psychological Associations on Psychology and the Media: Educating the Public. He has published a paper in Professional Psychology: Research & Practice on this same topic.

As Clinical Director of Hewlett Consultation Center from 1981 through 1999, Dr. Kanaris’ responsibilities included psychotherapy, sex/marital counseling, coordination of clinical services, professional training and community education. Since 1998, Dr. Kanaris has directed the Sexual Diagnostic Program at his office in Smithtown, New York.

Health Psychology and Cardiovascular Disease

Most people are aware of psychologists who do therapy through personal experience or the media but there are different subspecialties with the field of psychology. One of those subspecialties is health psychology. Health psychologists look at behavior, emotional factors, and social issues as contributors to medical health and illnesses. These clinical specialists use psychological knowledge to help patients prevent medical illness and assist patients in their treatment when they may have a medical illness. Today, Dr. Howard Gurr, the host for Psychology and You will be talking to Dr. Lubna Somjee about health psychology and cardiovascular disease.

Dr. Lubna Somjee is a clinical and health psychologist. Her practice is in the Hudson Valley, New York. Dr. Somjee obtained her doctoral degree at the University of South Dakota in clinical psychology. She then went on to complete two additional years of specialized post-doctoral fellowship training. Her first postdoctoral fellowship was at the Yale School of Medicine in clinical psychology and her second postdoctoral fellowship in clinical health psychology, at the Veterans Administration in West Haven Connecticut.

Her practice includes providing psychotherapy services to adults, adolescents and couples. She also specializes in health psychology services for individuals with chronic medical illnesses, including heart disease. Such services include helping patients manage their medical health utilizing psychosocial strategies, in addition to their medical treatments. She has consulted to physicians and worked in developing programs to provide psychosocial training and supervision to medical residents and fellows in hospital settings.

Dr. Somjee writes a monthly column in the Poughkeepsie Journal’s health section, titled ‘Mindful Living.’ She provides interviews for national and local media and speaks on topics related to clinical and health psychology. She offers executive coaching and business consultation services focusing on increasing organizational capacity, and wellness. You can find more about Dr. Somjee by going to her website http://www.lubnasomjee-phd.com/.

Why Choose a Psychologist

In this show, Dr. Lustberg speaks with Dr. Barbara Fontana a psychologist, who practices in Shoreham, New York. They discuss the differences between psychologists, psychiatrists and social workers.

Dr. Fontana has been seeing couples and individuals for over 30 years. She received her Ph.D. from St. John's University in 1975. Dr. Fontana is also the past president of the Suffolk County Psychological Association. She is currently serving as the secretary for the New York State Psychological Association. Dr. Fontana is the current co-chair of the New York State Psychological Association's Crisis in Private Practice Task Force, which was formed in 2007.