Introduction

The general introduction provides an overview of the intended audience and purpose of the book. The intended audience is therapists who have experience with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), and are interested in learning to work with patients with inflammatory bowel disease. The purpose of the book is to teach therapists what they need to know about IBD to work effectively with this population. This includes understanding the complications that can arise in IBD, and how they are diagnosed and treated. It also includes understanding the most common psychiatric comorbidities in IBD, and how IBD-specific content may underlie or exacerbate mental health or quality of life challenges. Finally, the introduction points out that working with patients with IBD often involves discussion of bodily processes and waste, and that therapists should only undertake this work if they are willing and able to have those conversations without embarrassment or disgust.