Behavioral Medicine Interventions for Stress Management
Instructors
Amaro Laria, Ph.D. & Katharine Larsson, PhD, PMH CNS-BC, RN
This workshop will introduce participants to specific behavioral medicine interventions for stress management. The basic psychophysiology of the stress response will be discussed, with particular attention to common physical and emotional responses to stress. An experiential model will be used to teach participants a variety of relaxation skills, including: breathing (diaphragmatic, as well as other forms), progressive muscle relaxation (PMR), autogenic training, guided imagery, and mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR). Other strategies that require further training will be introduced, including clinical hypnosis and biofeedback. In addition, some basic techniques of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) relevant to stress management will be discussed. The interventions taught in this workshop will be useful for working with patients suffering from various anxiety conditions, as well as psychological and physical problems associated with stress.
Description
November 1st, 2025
8:30 AM to 12:45 PM
Date & Time
Live Workshop with In-Person (at Boston Behavioral Medicine) and On-Line Attendance (via Zoom)
Format
Credits
4 CEs
Fee
$140
Participants will gain knowledge of the psychophysiology of the stress response and the negative consequences associated with chronic exposure to stress.
Participants will learn, through experiential exposure, a variety of stress management techniques, including diaphragmatic breathing, progressive muscle relaxation (active and passive), autogenic training, guided imagery, and mindfulness-based stress reduction, among others.
Participants will learn specific CBT and ACT techniques to target maladaptive chronic stress reactions.
Participants will gain competence integrating a variety of stress management strategies in their treatments with
Patients suffering from anxiety conditions, as well as other conditions exacerbated by stress.
Learning Objectives:
Dr. Amaro Laria, Ph.D., is a licensed clinical psychologist with over 30 years of clinical experience. Some of his areas of expertise include: behavioral medicine, clinical hypnosis, biofeedback, trauma and dissociation, culture and mental health, and integrative psychotherapy, among others. He has taught at various doctoral programs in clinical psychology at Clark University, UMass Boston, and William James College (formerly “Mass School of Professional Psychology”). Dr Laria was a NIMH post-doctoral research fellow in the Department of Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School, and has been in the faculty of the Department of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School through his affiliation with Cambridge Health Alliance for more than 20 years. He was an advisor to DSM-5 on the workgroup on culture and gender for the anxiety disorders. He has published in the areas of: dissociation, culture, and behavioral medicine, among others. He is the co-founder, with Dr. Kim Larsson, of Boston Behavioral Medicine in Brookline, MA, where he has been serving as a staff psychologist, director of training, training instructor, and clinical supervisor for 16 years. Dr. Laria has over 30 years of experience in the field of behavioral medicine, teaching and utilizing a variety of stress management strategies.
Dr. Katharine “Kim” Larsson is a doctoral level Psychiatric-Mental Health Clinical Nurse Specialist, Board Certified. Dr. Larsson has been working in the advanced practice role as both a psychotherapist and psychopharmacologist since 1995. She underwent psychotherapy training at the Cambridge Health Alliance (formerly known as The Cambridge Hospital), Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, MA. She also completed a two year post graduate fellowship at the Behavioral Medicine Program at The Cambridge Hospital, which emphasized integrative psychotherapy and the treatment of chronic medical conditions using various treatment strategies including stress management techniques, hypnosis and biofeedback, among other treatment modalities, to enhance her approaches to care. Dr. Larsson also worked for the Behavioral Medicine Department at Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates, where she ran mind-body medicine health improvement programs, developed the Biofeedback Program, and offered consultation-liaison services to various primary care and medical specialty providers. Dr. Larsson co-founded Boston Behavioral Medicine, LLC, with Dr. Amaro Laria. where she continues to practice integrative psychotherapy with medication management treatment, and offers training in various behavioral medicine approaches, including stress management techniques.