Our spotlight is shining once again! This time on Jennifer Shepard Payne, the recipient of the 2022 ACBS Social Work Award.  

-Please introduce yourself.
My name is Jennifer Shepard Payne. I am a Research Scientist and Clinician at the Kennedy Krieger Institute in the Center for Child and Family Traumatic Stress (CCFTS), and I am affiliated with the newly formed Center for the Neuroscience of Social Injustice. I am also an Assistant Professor at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine within the Department of Psychiatry, Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. I am the first research scientist with a social work doctorate ever hired at Kennedy Krieger or Johns Hopkins.
I received my doctorate in Social Welfare from UCLA, and I have been a Licensed Clinical Social Worker for decades. I have been working on culturally tailoring Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) for African American communities experiencing racial trauma for several years. I am a board member of MEND, a non-profit for therapists of color being trauma-trained to help oppressed communities: https://mendminds.org/our-board. I am also a board member of the North American Association of Christians in Social Work: https://www.nacsw.org/about-nacsw/leadership/.

-What connected you to the ACBS community?
About eight years ago, I started work as an Assistant Professor at a private college in California. There, I was assigned to revise a class on evidence-based interventions that I would teach to social work master's students. I added a module on mindfulness-related interventions in the course, and I invited a colleague friend to guest teach that module. During her teaching, I first heard about Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. I took training on ACT and fell in love with it! But I noticed that, at the time, I was the only person with dark skin in the rooms that I was in as I trained. I began to ask other Black clinicians if they had heard of ACT, and few had. So, I decided to commit to action that would help change that.

-How has the ACBS community supported work you want to do?
Certain individuals in the ACBS community have been amazingly supportive! In June 2020, soon after the killing of George Floyd, I met an amazing woman – Carynne Williams, who is the president of the non-profit MEND. When we met, MEND was still a germ of an idea. But the concept was – could there be an organization for clinicians of color where they would be able to be trauma trained in various evidence-based practices at prices more affordable and accessible to them? Would they commit to providing pro-bono services to at least two disadvantaged clients a year in return? When I heard about Carynne's vision, I immediately thought that ACT would be perfect as one of the trauma training offerings. Several ACBS community members jumped fully in to help, and they have been helping ever since. I am grateful to Meg McKelvie, Robyn Walser, Debbie Sorensen, Shawn Whooley, Melissa Connally, Miranda Morris, Temple Morris, Matt Boone, and Joanne Steinwachs. I am grateful for their voluntary commitment of time, attention, and knowledge via the ACT for MEND project that has developed and continues to thrive. I cannot say enough about how they have dug in with their whole hearts and minds into the work of training BIPOC clinicians in ACT.

-What are the most important values that you bring to your work?
One of the aspects of ACT that drew me in was the values work. I live a life of purpose, which is strongly tied to values. My goal has always been to help oppressed and disenfranchised populations. When I was nineteen years old, I had an experience that changed my life. I worked at a summer camp for disadvantaged children and had the privilege of getting to know some of them, their struggles, and their desire for positive attention in a safe space. I left the camp that summer feeling the call to help these children and families, and that call has never dissipated. My ways of helping have changed and shifted over the years, but my values are the same: collective freedom, authenticity, community, purpose, faith, culture, compassion, and integrity.

-Where could we learn more about your work?
I have two websites where you can learn more. The first is my website at www.drjspayne.com. The second describes a bit more about the culturally tailored model being piloted in Europe now: www.POOF-PullingOutOfFire.com.

Also, I will be doing training through PRAXIS, which I completed last year and received excellent reviews. The training is a four-week virtually live training on culturally tailored ACT for African Americans, coming up in May 2022: https://www.praxiscet.com/events/culturally-tailored-act-may-2022/. Last, I am happy that my first book is now available for pre-order in several venues, with a December 1st, 2022 release date: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/out-of-the-fire-jennifer-shepard-payne-phd-lcsw/1140860327.
  

Welcome to the feature of the ACBS monthly newsletter where we learn more about the inspiring work of ACBS members. For the January 2019 newsletter, Kate Morrissey Stahl interviews the co-founder of “Thru My Eyes” Michelle Maidenberg, PhD, MPH, LCSW, CGP.

Who are you?

I maintain a private practice in Harrison, New York. I am also the Co-Founder and Clinical Director of “Thru My Eyes” a nonprofit organization that offers free clinically-guided videotaping to chronically medically ill individuals who want to leave video legacies for their children and loved ones. A professional videographer and trained counselors are available at no cost to help guide clients through the challenging task of presenting a gift of lasting messages to their children and other family members. The organization was founded to empower those with life-threatening illnesses with the peace and knowledge in knowing that they will be remembered by those whom they loved the most.

In 2009, I met 40-year-old Dede at the gym I attend. Her blazing blue eyes (thus the name “Thru My Eyes”) and beautiful red hair were striking. After my exercise regimen I was standing at the mirror getting ready for work. We got into conversation about children and I expressed that I had four children and she disclosed that she had a daughter who was seven at the time.

Through our encounters at the mirror she eventually shared that she always dreamt of having many children but because of her bout with breast cancer and her extensive treatment, at the time, she accepted that she would remain childless. She described her daughter as being her “true miracle” because she and her doctors believed she would never conceive. She expressed how thankful she was to be in remission and spoke of her journey of discovery and evolution toward committing to live a present and purposeful life.  Approximately a year later, we stood by the mirror and she shared with me the facts about how the cancer had returned and she was receiving aggressive treatment and understood that she was “in the fight” of her life. My heart sank. I watched as her hair fell out, she became progressively weaker and eventually could not make it to the gym any longer. A fighter she was.

Dede worked out until she absolutely couldn’t anymore. I once asked her, how do you do it and muster up enough strength to come to the gym and remain so generous and positive. I’ll never forget her answer; it is forever burnished in my mind. She said during her last bout of cancer that she made the decision to live every moment of the rest of her life with appreciation and joy and planned to carry that out no matter what her demise. I marveled at her courage and motivation.

Further along in her illness, she approached me about wanting to videotape herself discussing important milestones for her daughter so that she could be left with anecdotes and critical lessons for life. She asked if she can consult with me about developmentally appropriate topics to cover. I helped her come up with a structure from which she wanted to be videotaped.

A few women at the gym did research on where they might offer such a service. At Sloan Kettering they had a videographer who came to the hospital only if a patient requested it. They had to be videotaped at the hospital, they had to pay for it, and they would be videotaped without any support or guidance. A few friends chipped in and we were able to get the videographer to come to Dede’s house to videotape.

Out of this experience I was committed to making this service for families readily available, effortless, supportive and empowering. I felt it should be offered at no cost so that all families, despite their socioeconomic status can benefit. Also, that families that are already incurring substantial financial stress do not have to be burdened with this additional expense. In addition, it should be accomplished in the comfort of a person’s home to preserve their dignity and integrity, and lastly, that a licensed mental health professional should be present throughout the taping so that they can offer emotional support and provide a script from which to guide the interview that was based on the topics they personally selected to discuss. Video footage of the family’s interactions (i.e., playing, reading, and practicing family traditions) are also edited into the final video legacy at the discretion of the family.

What connected you to the ACBS community?

My practice is formatively grounded in the contextual behavioral sciences. I have advanced training in ACT, am a member of an ACT supervision group, and use ACT in my direct practice with clients. I am the author of the book that is grounded in ACT, “Free Your Child From Overeating" 53 Mind-Body Strategies For Lifelong Health.”

I greatly appreciate and utilize ACBS’s plethora of valuable resources. I use the research resources, publications, the podcasts, and PowerPoints. I also have tremendous gratitude for the open, generous, and supportive ACBS community. I feel honored and fortunate to be part of this thriving community.

What are the most important values that you bring to your work?

The most important values I bring to my work are: human dignity, integrity, ethnic diversity, self-determination, commitment, perseverance, adaptability/flexibility, curiosity, compassion, learning/competency, and engagement/connectedness.

What got you started in social work?

In college I sought advice from a professor because of my desire to conduct family therapy/treatment. He advised me to consider social work which was the direct route his wife had taken in her studies. After doing research, and learning more about social work, I decided that it would be my chosen profession.

I wanted to do direct clinical practice, so I attended NYU because of its clinical track. After completing my MSW degree, I attended a two-year post Masters training program in Family Therapy and then I completed my doctoral studies in social work at Wurzweiler School of Social Work at Yeshiva University. To complement my social work education, and given my interest in health, I elected to further my education and earned a Master’s degree in Public Health (MPH) in Community Health Education at Hunter College.

What are your other professional activities and interests?

I created and coordinate the Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) Program at Camp Shane, a health & weight management camp for children and teens and Shane Diet and Fitness Resorts, a resort focusing on health & weight management for young adults and adults.

I’m an Adjunct Professor at New York University, teaching a graduate course in Mindfulness. I am the author of Free Your Child From Overeating: 53 Mind-Body Strategies For Lifelong Health. Utilizing CBT, ACT, and Mindfulness. I am also a blogger for PsychCentral and publish articles in various publications and speak on a variety of topics including trauma, anxiety, mindfulness, ACT, CBT, health and wellness, parenting, grief and bereavement.

I am a Board of Directors member at The Boys & Girls Club in Mount Vernon, NY. I am also a member of American Red Cross Crisis Team and serve on the Board of Directors of the Westchester Trauma Network (WTN). I have advanced training in CBT, ACT, Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR), Structural Family Therapy, and Mindfulness.

Where could we learn more about your work?
Web: My Website: http://www.michellemaidenberg.com/
Thru My Eyes Website: www.ThruMyEyes.org
Facebook: Dr Michelle Maidenberg: https://www.facebook.com/michellemaidenberg
Twitter: @DrMaidenberg: https://twitter.com/DrMaidenberg
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michellemaidenberg
Free Your Child From Overeating: 53 Mind-Body Strategies For Lifelong Health https://www.amazon.com/Free-Your-Child-Overeating-Handbook/dp/1615192700
PsychCentral Blog: Dr. Michelle Maidenberg – Thoughts of A Therapist: https://blogs.psychcentral.com/thoughts-therapist/

 

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If you have a social worker you would like to have ACBS interview, please email Kate Morrissey Stahl at kstahl@uga.edu.
If you have an ACBS member that you would like to have ACBS interview, please email Laura Purcell at community@contextualscience.org.

Welcome to a new feature of the ACBS monthly newsletter where we learn more about the inspiring work of ACBS members. In our first installment, Kate Morrissey Stahl interviews Alison Kiawenniserathe Benedict, MSW, RSW, a social worker practicing as a Provincial Aboriginal Training Coordinator in Kingston, Ontario, Canada.

Who are you?

My name is Alison Kiawenniserathe Benedict, MSW, RSW. I am a member of the Kanienkehaka Nation from Akwesasne, Wolf Clan.

I received my Master’s degree from the University of Michigan with a focus in clinical practice with children and youth, including school social work, and specialized training in child abuse and neglect. The foundation of my clinical practice originates from traditional teachings and teachings of the Peacemaker.

What got you started in social work?

Growing up, I was that kid that people talked to and confided in. In 1979, my family moved from Southern California to Akwesasne. It was a tremendous culture shock. In California, I did not experience racism. My teachers were kind to me and believed in me. I was able to ride my bike and go to the mall and beaches freely. When we moved to Akwesasne, there was no safe place. My love of learning was met with racism and sexism by teachers, principals, and administrators. Although there was some bullying by peers, it was not nearly as shocking as my experiences with adults. It was then that I began to understand the impact of trauma and social toxicity. At 15, as I sat with my friends who were contemplating living or dying, I learned how to stay and be with people who are suffering.

What connected you to the ACBS community?

Several years ago I attended a training in Toronto by Louise Hayes. It was incredible to learn that what I had been doing that had been so successful in my clinical work was an evidence-based practice! What joy! It was so validating. My clinical practice really bridged what I learned in traditional teachings and Western clinical practices. At work, my team was searching for evidence-based practices which could be used to help mental health and addiction workers across the province to support First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. Although there are some culturally adapted practice modalities, there was not one that was as culturally congruent as ACT. Listening to the wisdom of our Elders really shows how much these ways of helping and being are aligned.

One of the other main reasons that I chose ACT is how it is beneficial to both helper and person seeking help. There has been such systemic and ongoing trauma in First Nations, Inuit, and Métis communities that no one is unaffected or untouched. The helpers are supporting others, but are also in dire need of support themselves. Our approach to all training, including ACT, is that the training itself is healing medicine.

How has the ACBS community supported work you want to do?

The Ontario ACBS has been a tremendous resource to my work. At the time, Dr. Kenneth Fung was the President of the Ontario Chapter. He has been instrumental in supporting this work and incredibly helpful with connecting me with others who can also support it. Both he and Mary Bell have travelled with me to various Northern communities to train people in ACT.

What would you like to see from ACBS as we move forward in working to reduce suffering in the world?

Making room for everyone to sit equally in voice, knowledge, and spirit. Walking our talk - doing, being, and including. What do we leave behind to the communities after our conference has concluded? What will be our legacy as we move forward? At this year's conference, I wanted to bring a value-based action to our association in the form of reconciliation. It took many months and advocates to support the opening and closing ceremony by the traditional Kanienkehake Faithkeeper, Otsi'tsaken:ra. The beautiful outcome was well received by many. Although, in fact, this was only a small piece of what I had hoped to realize. I originally wanted to arrange outreach to two First Nations communities, Kahnawake, which is just across the Mercier Bridge and Kanesatake, which is the site of the 1990 Oka crisis, about 40 minutes from Montreal. It would have been a valuable opportunity to actually engage and support communities to reduce suffering. We are not going to reduce suffering in the world if we stay in our safe places. We need to challenge ourselves to organize conferences in Africa, South or Central America, and other places. While there, we must connect to the land and the people, inviting them to share their wisdom with us so that we can connect and heal together. Thus, what I would like to see is that ACBS demonstrate inspiring leadership, make this an important priority, and engage all of us in an inclusive planning process to take committed action towards this vision of collective learning and healing.

What are the most important values that you bring to your work?

Love is at the core of all that I do. It is living the Ohen:ton Karihwatehkwen (words before all else that acknowledges and thanks all in Creation). Respect is the core value. The action is to do no harm to all in Creation. Respect is responsibility and accountability.

Where could we learn more about your work?

Alison Benedict
Provincial Aboriginal Training Coordinator
Aboriginal Engagement and Outreach
Provincial System Support Program
M. 416 452-2154
T. 613 546-4266 ext. 78063
Find out more about us: https://www.porticonetwork.ca/web/camh-aboriginalinitiatives

 

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If you have a social worker you would like to have ACBS interview, please email Kate Morrissey Stahl at kstahl@uga.edu.
If you have an ACBS member that you would like to have ACBS interview, please email Laura Purcell at community@contextualscience.org.

Joanne Steinwachs (pictured left) is a social worker in private practice in Denver, Colorado. She recently became the first social worker to be designated a peer-reviewed ACT trainer. She facilitates online and in-person trainings on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Functional Analytic Psychotherapy (FAP), and recently completed a article on using FAP to train ACT with Benjamin Schoendorff. She is a visible social work presence on the ACBS listserv and is the founding president of the Rocky Mountain Chapter of ACBS. She was invited to be interviewed by the Social Work ACT Special Interest Group, and questions were posed by Julie Hamilton (pictured right), a coleader of the Social Work ACT SIG.

   

Julie: Please share with us your journey of how you came upon CBS/RFT/ACT and the development of CBS in your professional life as a social worker.

Joanne: I was extremely burned out when I came into the ACT community. I came out of my social work graduate training in 1990 with a lot of half formed scientistic theory, and realized pretty quickly I needed to have a better sense of what I was doing. From early on in my career, many of the people who came to see me had pretty serious struggles--major mental illnesses, addictions, very painful marriages, and significant trauma. Sometimes all at once. So I felt pretty incompetent for a lot of the time. I started looking for a theory that would help me organize the work and spent a lot of time in the psychodynamic/psychoanalytic realm, dabbling also in CBT and even got a lot of training in EMDR. However, none of these models helped me understand what was going on in the room much. So I got more and more frustrated and felt like a fraud. I did have a really busy practice, though.

Julie: What was the response of your clients and colleagues to this transition?

Joanne: I really drank the Kool-Aid. I went to the first Summer Institute, and my first workshop was with Steve. I felt like I had the Answer. So I came back to my colleagues and clients to tell them. I lost about 2/3 of my clients and almost all of my referral sources. Remember, I was working from the 2-3 sessions a week for 5 years model, working assiduously to get rid of the pain. People were definitely not impressed. I did connect with the then tiny behavioral community here in Denver, though. It helped a lot, but I had no understanding of behaviorism or learning theory or behavior analysis, so I was kludging ACT onto my "get rid of pain" agenda without even knowing that I was doing it. I realized that I really didn't understand what people were saying in the ACT community, I was fundamentally misconstruing things because I didn't have the basic theoretical grounding-- so I went to John McNeil, who taught the behavioral sequence for the Psy.D program at the University of Denver, and asked him to be my teacher. I had to start with undergraduate texts and work my way up to the basic texts that people in the ACT community suggested. I spent a LOT of time being frustrated and confused, but I think learning the basics of clinical behavior analysis was crucial for my growth as a functional contextualist. I don't know how I could have transformed my life and my practice without it. I'm back up to more than full time and I find myself being able to do clinical and training work that I've never been able to do before.

Julie: You have become a respected leader in the ACT/CBS training community. Can you share how this came about and what you believe is important regarding the training of colleagues?

Joanne: Regarding being a respected leader, I don't really think of myself like that. I have been able with functional contextualism to stand for my values. I value being of service, helping out people who are struggling to do this difficult and often lonely work. So I try to show up as much as I can. I think when I get stuck on thoughts about My Place in the ACT Community, none of that is available to me. So I just try to keep my attention on helping out. That's why I was a part of forming the ACBS chapter here in Denver in 2009. I was really shocked when the people I started it up with asked me to be the first president. It was a huge honor. It's been with great pride I've seen the board transition to all new people, who are doing an amazing job bringing CBS to the Rocky Mountain region. It's also why I became a peer reviewed ACT trainer, I wanted to help out, and I wanted other social workers to see that it can be done, even if you've never taken a philosophy of science class in your life.

Julie: How has this impacted you personally/professionally?

Joanne: Learning to distinguish between who a person is, and what they know how to do, freed me both personally and professionally. Until I came into the ACT community, it was a dark secret of mine that I fulfilled diagnostic criteria for many of the Axis II disorders in the DSM. Not all the time and not all of them, but enough to feel very shameful. I'm really fortunate that that whole worldview has just evaporated for me, and I think my clients probably appreciate it too.

Julie: What do you see the role of the social work community playing in the continued proliferation of CBS?

Joanne: I think that social workers can take over the world with peace love and understanding and functional contextualism. Seriously, I cannot think of a theory that is more in line with social work values than functional contextualism. We provide the bulk of mental health care in this country and it breaks my heart that more social workers don't know about contextual behavioral science. I feel really good coming home to social work after all these years of hanging out with psychologists. There's a deep sense of "these are my people" that I feel when I talk functional contextualism with social workers.