Season 5 | Episode 57

In this episode, Spencer Ellison and Dr. Jennifer Muehlenkamp read a hypothetical case vignette of a client who engages in nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI), has experienced suicidal thoughts or behaviors, or is experiencing significant depression. They then tell us how willing therapists are to treat each case (self-injury vs. suicide vs. depression), if therapists would accept them into their clinical practice, and if it depends on the therapists' (1) liability concerns, (2) comfort/skill confidence to treat self-harm, (3) attitude toward self-harm in general, and (4) attitude towards clients who self-harm.

Learn more about Dr. Muehlenkamp at her University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire faculty page here, and see her growing list of peer-reviewed publications on Google Scholar here. Learn more about Trinity Equestrian Center at www.trinity-ec.com. Below are a couple research studies referenced in this episode:

1. Levi-Belz, Y., Barzilay, S., Levy, D., & David, O. (2020). To treat or not to treat: The effect of hypothetical patients' suicidal severity on therapists' willingness to treat. Archives of Suicide Research, 24(3), 355-366.

2. Groth, T., & Boccio, D. E. (2019). Psychologists’ willingness to provide services to individuals at risk of suicide. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 49(5), 1241-1254.