An introduction to Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART) - Simple and Practical Mental Health

A very brief introduction to Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART) is provided on this page so that mental health clinicians who have not been trained in this therapy can become aware of what it is and which patients may be candidates for being referred for this therapy.

What is Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART)?

Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART) is a specific type of trauma-focused psychotherapy that has been used for the treatment of many different mental conditions. But the ones for which it was found to be effective in at least one published randomized, controlled clinical trial are:

– Combat-related post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD; Kip et al., 2013)

– Physical pain associated with PTSD (Kip et al., 2014)

– “Complicated grief” (Buck et al., 2020).

The reason its name includes the word “accelerated” is that in some patients it may result in significant improvement in PTSD symptoms after only three or four treatment sessions. Sometimes, patients may show a resolution of symptoms in only one session!

ART was developed in 2008 by Laney Rosenzweig, LMFT.

What are the components of ART?

ART is a hybrid of several evidence-based psychotherapy techniques but it is primarily a modification of EMDR (Toukolehto et al., 2020).

ART is a “manualized” therapy, by which we mean that there is a manual that describes how the therapy should be done.

Its core components are:

– Guided visualization along with eye movements, desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) of distressing memories

– Imaging rescripting

– Imaginal exposure to future feared triggers.

– Memory reconsolidation

– Use of metaphors

– Mindful awareness of emotions and sensations

– Visual and cognitive rescripting

– Gestalt-style interventions for the processing of traumatic experiences.

Other important characteristics of ART are that it:

– Focuses on the person’s present experience

– Focuses on the person’s relationships, unfinished business, and cognitive dissonance.

In ART, there is not much talking during the session and no homework between sessions. Patients may have less distress after imaginal exposure in ART than in other similar therapies.

Where can ART therapists be found?

The website of the Rosenzweig Center for Rapid Recovery (RCRR) is acceleratedresolutiontherapy.com. Therapists trained in ART can be found on that website at the following link:

https://acceleratedresolutiontherapy.com/therapist-directory/

Another website for finding an ART therapist is:

https://artherapyinternational.org/find-an-art-therapist/

ART therapists can also be found through the website of the International Society of Accelerated Resolution Therapy:

https://www.is-art.org/directory/

Where can therapists get training in ART?

ART is reportedly easier to learn than EMDR or other trauma-focused psychotherapies. Information about training is available at the following websites:

https://acceleratedresolutiontherapy.com/types-of-training-available/

https://artherapyinternational.org/events/maps/

Disclaimer: As of July 2020, I have not received training in ART, I have not seen any patient who received this treatment, and I have not done a careful review of the published literature. So, the information on this page is provided only to make mental health clinicians aware that such a therapy exists. Some readers may want to look into it further.

References

Buck HG, Cairns P, BPharm NE, Hernandez DF, Mason TM, Bell J, Kip KE, Barrison P, Tofthagen C. Accelerated Resolution Therapy: Randomized Controlled Trial of a Complicated Grief Intervention. Am J Hosp Palliat Care. 2020 Jan 21:1049909119900641. doi: 10.1177/1049909119900641. Epub ahead of print. PMID:
31960705.

Finnegan A, Kip K, Hernandez D, McGhee S, Rosenzweig L, Hynes C, Thomas M. Accelerated resolution therapy: an innovative mental health intervention to treat post-traumatic stress disorder. J R Army Med Corps. 2016 Apr;162(2):90-7. doi: 10.1136/jramc-2015-000417. Epub 2015 Jul 3. PMID: 26141210.

Hernandez DF, Waits W, Calvio L, Byrne M. Practice comparisons between accelerated resolution therapy, eye movement desensitization and reprocessing and cognitive processing therapy with case examples. Nurse Educ Today. 2016 Dec;47:74-80. doi: 10.1016/j.nedt.2016.05.010. Epub 2016 May 21. PMID: 27250615.

Hoge C. Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART): Clinical Considerations, Cautions, and Informed Consent for Military Mental Health Clinicians. Bethesda, MA: Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Office of the Surgeon General; 2015.

Howe EG, Rosenzweig L, Shuman A. Ethical Reflections on Offering Patients Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART). Innov Clin Neurosci. 2018 Aug 1;15(7-8):32-34. PMID: 30254798; PMCID: PMC6145606.

Kip KE, D’Aoust RF, Hernandez DF, Girling SA, Cuttino B, Long MK, Rojas P, Wittenberg T, Abhayakumar A, Rosenzweig L. Evaluation of brief treatment of symptoms of psychological trauma among veterans residing in a homeless shelter by use of Accelerated Resolution Therapy. Nurs Outlook. 2016 Sep-
Oct;64(5):411-23. doi: 10.1016/j.outlook.2016.04.006. Epub 2016 May 7. PMID: 27601310.

Kip KE, Diamond DM. Clinical, Empirical, and Theoretical Rationale for Selection of Accelerated Resolution Therapy for Treatment of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder in VA and DoD Facilities. Mil Med. 2018 Sep
1;183(9-10):e314-e321. doi: 10.1093/milmed/usy027. PMID: 29635395.

Kip KE, Elk CA, Sullivan KL, Kadel R, Lengacher CA, Long CJ, Rosenzweig L, Shuman A, Hernandez DF, Street JD, Girling SA, Diamond DM. Brief Treatment of Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) by Use of Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART(®)). Behav Sci (Basel). 2012 Jun 18;2(2):115-34. doi: 10.3390/bs2020115. PMID: 25379218; PMCID: PMC4217580.

Kip KE, Hernandez DF, Shuman A, Witt A, Diamond DM, Davis S, Kip R, Abhayakumar A, Wittenberg T, Girling SA, Witt S, Rosenzweig L. Comparison of Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART) for Treatment of Symptoms of PTSD and Sexual Trauma Between Civilian and Military Adults. Mil Med. 2015 Sep;180(9):964-71. doi: 10.7205/MILMED-D-14-00307. PMID: 26327548.

Kip KE, Rosenzweig L, Hernandez DF, Shuman A, Diamond DM, Girling SA, Sullivan KL, Wittenberg T, Witt AM, Lengacher CA, Anderson B, McMillan SC. Accelerated Resolution Therapy for treatment of pain secondary to symptoms of combat-related posttraumatic stress disorder. Eur J Psychotraumatol. 2014 May 7;5. doi: 10.3402/ejpt.v5.24066. PMID: 24959325; PMCID: PMC4014659.

Kip KE, Rosenzweig L, Hernandez DF, Shuman A, Sullivan KL, Long CJ, Taylor J, McGhee S, Girling SA, Wittenberg T, Sahebzamani FM, Lengacher CA, Kadel R, Diamond DM. Randomized controlled trial of accelerated resolution therapy (ART) for symptoms of combat-related post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Mil Med. 2013 Dec;178(12):1298-309. doi: 10.7205/MILMED-D-13-00298. PMID: 24306011.

Kip KE, Shuman A, Hernandez DF, Diamond DM, Rosenzweig L. Case report and theoretical description of accelerated resolution therapy (ART) for military-related post-traumatic stress disorder. Mil Med. 2014 Jan;179(1):31-7. doi: 10.7205/MILMED-D-13-00229. PMID: 24402982.

Kip KE, Sullivan KL, Lengacher CA, Rosenzweig L, Hernandez DF, Kadel R, Kozel FA, Shuman A, Girling SA, Hardwick MJ, Diamond DM. Brief treatment of co-occurring post-traumatic stress and depressive symptoms by use of accelerated resolution therapy(®). Front Psychiatry. 2013 Mar 8;4:11. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2013.00011. PMID: 23482431; PMCID: PMC3591743.

Schimmels J, Waits W. A Tale of Two Compulsions – Two Case Studies Using Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART) for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). Mil Med. 2019 May 1;184(5-6):e470-e474. doi: 10.1093/milmed/usy257. Erratum in: Mil Med. 2019 Jan 1;184(1-2):59. PMID: 30295890.

Toukolehto OT, Waits WM, Preece DM, Samsey KM. Accelerated Resolution Therapy-Based Intervention in the Treatment of Acute Stress Reactions During Deployed Military Operations. Mil Med. 2020 Mar 2;185(3-4):356-362. doi: 10.1093/milmed/usz315. PMID: 31735965.

Waits W, Marumoto M, Weaver J. Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART): a Review and Research to Date. Curr Psychiatry Rep. 2017 Mar;19(3):18. doi: 10.1007/s11920-017-0765-y. PMID: 28290061.

Disclaimer: The content on this website is provided as general education for medical professionals. It is not intended or recommended for patients or other laypersons or as a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Patients must always consult a qualified health care professional regarding their diagnosis and treatment. Healthcare professionals should always check this website for the most recently updated information.