Dr. Brian Curtis, PhD, DBSM
Education
Doctorate (PhD) in clinical psychology, Board certified in Behavioral Sleep Medicine (DBSM), Master’s (MS) in neuroscience under the mentorship of Nobel Prize winning geneticist Dr. Mario Capecchi, PhD.
Clinical Experience
Advanced training and certification in evidence-based assessment and treatment of chronic insomnia, nightmare disorder, borderline personality disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Research
12 years of research experience and 12 peer-reviewed scientific publications in some of the world's top journals in neuroscience, psychology, and sleep medicine. Member of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and Society of Behavioral Sleep Medicine.
DBT-Sleep
Brian is one of only 218 clinicians in the world who is board certified in behavioral sleep medicine (DBSM) and the only DBSM specialist with advanced training and certification in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT).
Treatment that works.
Chronic Insomnia:
The most effective treatment for chronic insomnia in adults takes 6-8 weeks and involves daily monitoring of your sleep-wake pattern, targeting specific patterns of behavior, thoughts, and emotions, and refining treatment over time until you're able to regularly fall asleep and stay asleep without difficulty.
Recurring Nightmares:
The most effective treatment for nightmare disorder in adults takes 6-9 weeks and involves daily monitoring of your sleep-wake pattern, learning about the nature of nightmares, daily practice of skills targeting nightmare-related imagery, thoughts, and emotions, and refining treatment until nightmares are no longer problematic.
Chronic Stress:
Anxiety, depressed mood, post-traumatic stress, and ongoing sleep disruption negatively impacts our mental health, physical health, and can damage relationships with the people we love.
Evidence-based treatments for chronic stress involves the learning and practice of skills to increase relaxation, skillfully change our relationship to thoughts, emotions, and stressful situations, increase engagement with meaningful activities, deepen our relationships, be more present and in the moment, discover our values, and commit to living more open, flexible, authentic lives.
Chronic Insomnia.
Common. Concerning. A Vicious Cycle.
Common: ~10% of the general population, ~50% of individuals diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, and ~70% of people diagnosed with PTSD struggle with chronic insomnia.
Concerning: Chronic insomnia is associated with increased risk for depression, anxiety, substance use, chronic pain, heart disease, and suicide. Lower your risk by treating your chronic insomnia today.
Nightmare Disorder.
No more frightening dreams.
You're not alone: ~5% of the general population, ~50% of people diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, and over 70% of people diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder struggle with recurring, frightening, well-remembered dreams.
Treating your nightmares directly: Even following successful treatment of co-existing difficulties like trauma and trouble regulating intense emotions, nightmares and insomnia tend to remain problematic if they're not treated directly. Improve your sleep, mood, relationships, and wellbeing by treating your nightmares today.
Chronic Stress.
Anxiety. Depression. Trauma. Disconnection.
Sleeping and Stress: Difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep, or experiencing recurring nightmares often go hand-in-hand with chronic stress, including uncontrollable worry, depressed mood, stress following a traumatic experience, and feeling isolated from the people we love.
Integrated treatment: Rather than focusing on only one aspect of your health and wellbeing, we will work to build an individualized treatment plan that combines science and change with compassion and acceptance to help you finally find relief from chronic stress, to fall asleep, stay asleep, and wake up feeling more energized and refreshed, and to start living a more authentic, values-based life.
Continuing Education.
Transform your practice.
Sleep disruption is transdiagnostic: Research indicates that sleep disruption is common across many, if not most, mental health disorders. Unfortunately, there are few clinicians with competence to address these challenges.
Be part of the solution: By participating in continuing education offered by Honest Sleep, you will learn how to integrate the assessment and treatment of comorbid sleep disruption into your clinical practice to more effectively serve your clients.
Upcoming Trainings:
No upcoming trainings scheduled at this time.
Past Trainings:
Assessing and Treating Sleep Disruption in Your Clients: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I). 6.0-Hour Advanced Virtual Training for Mental Health Providers. The Pauquette Center for Psychological Services, Portage, WI. Subject Matter Expert: Brian Curtis, PhD, DBSM. September 08, 2023.
Integrating CBT-I Into a DBT Program. 3.0-Hour Advanced Virtual Training for Mental Health Providers. Behavioral Care Center of New Jersey, Florham Park, NJ. Subject Matter Expert: Brian Curtis, PhD. October 24, 2022.
Treating Posttraumatic Nightmares. 3.0-Hour Advanced Virtual Training for Mental Health Providers. Behavioral Care Center of New Jersey, Florham Park, NJ. Subject Matter Expert: Brian Curtis, PhD. October 21, 2022.
Targeting Sleep Disruptions to Improve the Effectiveness of DBT. 6.0-Hour Advanced Virtual Training for Mental Health Providers. Behavioral Care Center of New Jersey, Florham Park, NJ. Subject Matter Expert: Brian Curtis, PhD. September 30, 2022.
Assessing and Treating Sleep Disruptions: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I). Advanced Virtual 2.0-Hour Training for Clinical Staff and Graduate Students in Clinical Psychology. University of Toledo, Toledo, OH. Subject Matter Expert: Brian Curtis, PhD. September 27, 2022.
Assessing and Treating Sleep Disruptions: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I). Advanced Virtual 2.0-Hour Training for Mental Health Providers. TheraCare Wellness, Brea, California. Subject Matter Expert: Brian Curtis, PhD. August 19, 2022.
Targeting Sleep Disruptions to Improve the Effectiveness of DBT. Advanced Virtual Trainings for Mental Health Providers. Atlanta DBT Center, Norcross, GA. Subject Matter Expert: Brian Curtis, PhD. 1.5-Hour Trainings Occurring on June 08, 2022, August 17, 2022, September 14, 2022, September 28, 2022, October 12, 2022, October 26, 2022, and December 07, 2022.
Assessing and Treating Sleep Disruptions in Anxiety and OCD. 6.0-Hour Advanced Virtual Training for Mental Health Providers. Juniper Mental Health, Sandy, UT. Subject Matter Expert: Brian Curtis, PhD. March 18, 2022.
Telehealth.
All our services are provided through telehealth using a secure, HIPAA-compliant software platform. Engage in this life changing work from home or another private location of your choice.
Helping better. Together.
At Honest Sleep, we're dedicated to increasing human health and wellbeing. We donate 10% of our profits to the world's most effective charities through the effective altruism-focused organization GiveWell.