Adam Henderson, MD is a double board-certified adult psychiatrist and addiction medicine specialist with expertise in trauma, PTSD, personality disorders, and Mentalization-Based Treatment (MBT). He serves as an attending psychiatrist at McLean Hospital’s Gunderson Intensive Outpatient Program and is an instructor in psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.
Dr. Henderson completed his training at Brown University and the MGH/McLean Adult Psychiatry Residency Program, where he served as outpatient chief resident, and pursued additional training in psychoanalysis. His clinical work focuses on delivering evidence-based, mentalization-informed care across individual, family, and group settings.
He is the founder of learnMBT.com, a free educational platform dedicated to expanding access to MBT training for clinicians, and maintains a private practice providing therapy and medication management. Dr. Henderson is also committed to advancing innovative, outcomes-driven models of care that improve access and quality in mental health treatment.
Response Ability: Using Mentalization-Based Treatment (MBT) to Heal PTSD, Trauma, and Personality Disorders
Healing from complex trauma and personality disorders requires more than symptom management. It requires the restoration of the patient’s capacity to "mentalize". Mentalization helps clients make sense of their own and others' internal states, restoring reflection, agency and emotional regulation.
In this session of Guidelight’s Continuing Education series, we explore the MBT framework. Participants will gain practical, evidence-based tools to help clients move from reflexive reactions to reflective, intentional actions. Sharpen your clinical response to reflexive states, helping clients brid...Read morege the gap between reactive emotional modes and genuine, reflective insight and change. Less...
Learning Objectives
- Apply the philosophy of response-ability by shifting from reactive survival to reflective agency in the face of triggers.
- Identify pre-mentalizing modes, including Psychic Equivalence (certainty), Teleological thinking (demands for action), and Pretend Mode (intellectualization).
- Utilize a “not-knowing” stance to maintain curiosity and a non-judgmental position that fosters client self-discovery.
- Utilize the MBT compass by balancing self vs. other and cognitive vs. affective mentalizing in live sessions.
- Apply the “Stop, Listen, Look” intervention to pause and explore breaks in mentalizing during high-conflict moments.
Target Audience
This educational activity is intended for behavioral health professionals, including Psychologists, Social Workers, Counselors, and MFT's.
Learning Levels
- Beginner
- Intermediate
- Advanced
Wednesday, May 13, 2026
Live Interactive Webinar
12:00 PM EDT - 01:00 PM EDT
EARN 1 CE Credit Hours
Click Here to Register
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About the speaker
Adam Henderson, MD
Staff Psychiatrist, McLean Hospital
Agenda
Welcome & Introduction- Overview of session objectives
- Framing “Response-Ability” and the role of MBT
Module 1: The Philosophy of Response-Ability
- What is mentalizing?
- From reflexive reaction to reflective action
- Neurobiology of stress and mentalizing breakdown
- Role of attachment in developing reflective capacity
Module 2: Trauma and the Collapse of Meaning
- How trauma disrupts mentalizing
- Understanding pre-mentalizing modes:
- Psychic Equivalence
- Teleological Mode
- Pretend Mode
- Epistemic mistrust and barriers to learning
Module 3: The MBT Treatment Model
- Therapist stance: “Not-Knowing”
- Core aim of MBT (present-focused work)
- The four dimensions of mentalizing
- Key interventions:
- Mentalizing loop
- Stop, Listen, Look
- Mentalizing challenge
- Validation + mentalizing balance
Module 4: Practical Application & Case Examples
- Case study: Borderline Personality Disorder
- Case study: Complex PTSD
- Building epistemic trust in treatment
- Measuring clinical progress and outcomes
Integration, Q&A, and Closing
- Therapist self-awareness and maintaining a mentalizing stance
- Key takeaways and clinical application
- Audience Q&A
CE Information - Earn 1 CE Credit Hour
CE Approvals
Joint Accreditation
In support of improving patient care, CE Learning Systems is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.
American Psychological Association
Continuing Education (CE) credits for psychologists are provided through the co-sponsorship of the American Psychological Association (APA) Office of Continuing Education in Psychology (CEP). The APA CEP office maintains responsibility for the content of the programs.
New York Education Department's State Board for Social Work
CE Learning Systems, LLC (d/b/a impactce.com) is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Social Work as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed mental health counselors. #0060.
New York Education Department Board of Creative Arts Therapy
CE Learning Systems, LLC (d/b/a impactce.com) is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board of Creative Arts Therapy as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed mental health counselors. #CAT-0008
New York Education Department for Licensed Mental Health Counselors
CE Learning Systems, LLC (d/b/a impactce.com) is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed mental health counselors. #MHC-0072.
New York Education Department Board for Licensed Psychoanalysts
CE Learning Systems, LLC (d/b/a impactce.com) is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Psychoanalysts as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed mental health counselors. #P-0031.
New York State Education Department's State Board for Psychology
CE Learning Systems, LLC (d/b/a impactce.com) is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Psychology as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed mental health counselors. #PSY-0016.
New York Education Department's State Board for Marriage and Family Therapy
CE Learning Systems, LLC (d/b/a impactce.com) is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Marriage and Family Therapy as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed mental health counselors. #MFT-0045.
CE Process Info
Before the event, you will receive an email from CE-Go with access to the virtual event. After the event, you will receive access to your evaluation and continuing education certificate via a personalized "attendee dashboard" link, hosted on the CE-Go website. This link and access to the virtual event will be sent to the email account you used to register for the event.
Upon accessing the CE-Go "attendee dashboard", you will be able to:
- Complete evaluation forms for the event
- Download your continuing education certificate in a PDF format
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Disclosure
DISCLOSURE OF RELEVANT FINANCIAL RELATIONSHIPSCE Learning Systems adheres to the ACCME’s Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Medical Education. Any individuals in a position to control the content of a CE activity ― including faculty, planners, reviewers, or others ― are required to disclose all relevant financial relationships with ineligible entities (formerly known as commercial interests).
The following relevant financial relationships have been disclosed by this activity’s planners, faculty, and the reviewer:
PLANNERS AND REVIEWER
The planners of this activity have reported that they have no relevant financial relationships.
FACULTY
The faculty of this activity have reported that they have no relevant financial relationships.