Summary: BSL Insider Exclusive: Dr. Edna Foa, TIME Magazine's 100 Most Influential People in the World for 2010, joins us on the show today. Trauma. It's a big word. Stress? Anxiety? No less. Somehow though, these things have become themes of our daily lives and of the world we live in. Life is fast. The speed of the endless stream of information coming at you? Overwhelming. People everywhere, like you and me, have the same challenges to deal with. Keeping up with the constantly evolving challenges, placed daily before us, through any of the normal routines we are likely to experience can trigger something. By just going to the grocery store. By driving in traffic. By talking to someone we find interesting. That's why it's so important we have people like Dr. Edna Foa doing the work she does. She helps people who have anxiety, stress, or trauma deal with them in a way that helps resolve it effectively, especially when it's concerning something horrific that you may have experienced in your past. No, not on the level that daily life brings to us. But on a much, much bigger scale. She knows how to help people who've been raped and who've gone on to wars overseas, witnessing unforgettable atrocities. Today makes for an interesting discussion for everyone however. What better person to help us deal with our own daily battles in living in such a hectic world? And since you're here, you know we're not interested in just surviving in today's times. It's about thriving. Listen in below to hear the special tips and strategies that she offers us in doing so... Our BSL Insider: Dr. Edna Foa was listed as one of Time's Top 100 Influential People for developing Prolonged Exposure (PE) Therapy, a highly effective treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder (or PTSD). Exposure therapy is a behavioral treatment where the goal is to help reduce a person's fear and anxiety, with the ultimate goal of eliminating avoidance behavior and increasing quality of life. This is done by actively confronting (and not avoiding) the things that a person fears. By confronting feared situations, thoughts, and emotions, a person can learn that anxiety and fear will lessen on its own. Prolonged exposure has been found to be successful in reducing PTSD symptoms for people exposed to a number of different traumatic events such as rape, and it is now being used for returning military veterans. Dr. Foa is a Professor of Clinical Psychology and Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania and Director of the Center for the Treatment and Study of Anxiety. She received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology and Personality from the University of Missouri, Columbia, in 1970. Dr. Foa devoted her academic career to study the psychopathology and treatment of anxiety disorders, including obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and social phobia, and is currently one of the world's leading experts in these areas. Her research has been funded by private and government institutes. Recently, Dr. Foa has focused on disseminating evidence-based treatment for PTSD to community clinics in the U.S. and around the world. Dr. Foa has published several books and over 350 research articles and book chapters and has lectured extensively around the world. Her work has been recognized with numerous awards and honors. Needless to say, she's doing remarkable work. Don't get it confused though, her ground-breaking work has taken time to develop and refine. She didn't do it overnight. It's a lesson for all of us. Dr. Foa has received many awards and accolades, but she continues now with the work involved in disseminating and spreading it. Sometimes, people are slow to adopt new ideas no matter how effective they are. That's when the time comes that you have to decide to be a leader. In This Episode, You Will Learn: Dr. Foa's revolutionary Prolonged Exposure (PE) Therapy approach How to effectively process traumatic memories
