Dr. Opdyke earned a Bachelor of the Arts Degree in Psychology at Mansfield University of Pennsylvania in 1976 and then completed a Master of Science Degree at Indiana State University in 1983. In 1995, he recieved a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Georgia State University. In his doctoral dissertation, he studied the clinical effectiveness of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) in the treatment of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

Aside from using EMDR for two decades, Dr. Opdyke is also proficient in Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) and Prolonged Exposure (PE) for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. He has been Certified Competent by the Veterans Health Administration in these modalities. He is VA-Certified also in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Depression (CBT-D), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Depression (ACT-D), and Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT). All of these trainings were 3-4 full days long and followed up by weekly 90 minute telephone consultation supervision for six months. Dr. Opdyke is a Charter Member of the Association for Contextual Behavioral Science (ACBS).

Dr. Opdyke’s professional experience includes work in a variety of public and private mental health settings. He has served as a supervising and clinical psychologist in hospitals, group homes, community mental health centers and private practice. His research and publication experience includes the effectiveness of various Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) techniques in treating anxiety disorders and the use of computer-based virtual environments in treating phobias.

In his current practice, Dr. Opdyke helps adults and couples using Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), Family Systems Therapy and other science-based methods as needed. Dr. Opdyke specializes in psychological trauma, anxiety, depression and couples therapy. He also serves as Staff Psychologist for the Hickory Community Based Outpatient Clinic, an extension of the Salisbury VA Medical Center.