Psychotherapy can be defined as "talk therapy; a treatment approach in which a client works with a mental health professional to reduce psychological symptoms and improve quality of life" (Licht, Hull, Ballatyne G-10). Group therapy, such as couples therapy, is the route I would investigate, if I were to enter psychotherapy. Individual psychotherapy is much different than working in a group setting. Within couples therapy, a psychologist will focus on communication between the two persons involved, attempting to bring insight to what is going on between the couple, instead of what is just going on inside of one particular person. I know that there are always two sides to every story, so if I were only dealing with one individual, I know that
D. Recovery Therapy from Addiction: Some medical systems, including those of at least 15 states of the United States, refer to an Addiction Severity Index to assess the severity of problems related to substance use. The index assesses problems in six areas: medical, employment/support, alcohol and other drug use, legal, family/social, and psychiatric. While addiction or dependency is related to seemingly uncontrollable urges, and has roots in genetic predisposition, treatment of dependency is conducted by a wide range of medical and allied professionals. Early treatment of acute withdrawal often includes medical detoxification, which can include doses of anxiolytics or narcotics to reduce symptoms of withdrawal. An experimental drug, ibogaine
In the study done by Drossel, Fisher, & Mercer (2011), a Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills training manual (DBT Skills) was used for caregivers of patients with dementia, mainly in community clinical settings. This was designed because of the lack of effective therapy options currently in healthcare for elderly abuse. Researchers studied the DBT Skills training manual to examine if its effect would not only help at-risk caregivers to decrease the harm towards elderly patients with dementia, but also improve quality of life for the patients. There were 24 caregivers (19 women and five men) and most were family members. The DBT Skills training entailed one introductory meeting and eight weekly sessions.
Because adolescents are often mandated by the court or by their parents, YES Community Counseling Center uses an intervention called Motivational Engagement Therapy and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy 5 (MET/CBT 5) to engage their adolescent clients. MET/CBT 5 is an evidence-based practice called. It is a 5-week program in which adolescents are educated about the consequences of drug and alcohol use, skills for resisting drug and alcohol, and skills for talking about their issues. When a client is involved in the MET/CBT 5 program, they are also involved in the Psycho-Educational Group. The Psycho-Educational Group is a minimum of twelve weeks, during which they discuss issues surrounding substance abuse.
Survivors Support Group I am currently on the mental health track, so looking at a potential group that I might encounter would encompass female victims of domestic violence and abuse (DVA) which is also referred to as intimate partner violence (IPV) and rape or sexual assault victims (as statues vary depending on the states definition). Both forms of abuse stem from a power and control dynamic. The use of force during sex is not about sexual pleasure for the perpetrator, instead the pleasure comes from being in a position of power and having control over another human being. The act of hurting and demeaning the woman is the real pleasure. DVA/IPV consists of physical, sexual, emotional, and economic abuse.
Many individuals find group therapies effective as well because it allows them to reconnect with others about the similar experiences they face. Antidepressants,
The text book, The Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy by Irvin D. Yalom with Molyn Leszcz begins with the preface of the fifth edition. In the preface, Irvin D. Yalom introduced Molyn Leszcz as his collaborator and how they met at Stanford University in 1980. He then discussed how they both worked hard collaboratively to combine old and new material to make this edition. Their goals for this edition were to prepare student therapists for the present-day workplace and to keep the current methods from decaying, so that students can gather wisdom and techniques of the field when they get the opportunity to utilize those methods as therapists. Yalom briefly talked about what each chapter in the text would discuss.
According to Virginia Brabender, co-author of Essentials of Group Therapy, this form of treatment involves “a small group of members and one or more therapists with specialized training [verbally communicating among each other] …it is designed to promote psychological growth” (Brabender 15). In practice, this method has been proven to be quite successful in treating psychiatric patients: “review studies…consistently reveal that group therapy is effective in producing positive changes” (Brabender 161). Furthermore, it has been determined that group therapy allows patients with different forms of mental disorders, including severe anxiety and PTSD, to see benefits in their esteem, satisfaction in life, and behavior (Brabender
Jo, age 32, comes to see you for a history of depression, overeating and grief over her father’s death. In the intake session she tells you that she is very confused about her father’s death because she feels sad and glad. She tells you that he sexually abused her for three years from age 9-12. Jo has come to my office with the chief complaint of depression, as well as a history of over eating. During her intake, she states that her father, who has died recently, sexually abused her while she was a child.
Our group topics were engaging and discussed personal matters that affected our lives. It is nice to have a sense of group cohesiveness, altruism and universality, but despite the closeness it does make one realize in the end that our problems are still ours alone. At the same time, it is good to have support and have others that resonate with your experiences and know that life is difficult and that it can be unfair (Yalom & Leszcz, 2005, p. 90). Conclusion In conclusion this semesters group therapy, has been a great learning experience to understand the therapeutic elements of the group.
Ethical Issues in Group Therapy: Involuntary Membership Group psychotherapy is often voluntary, but sometimes members have been mandated by the court or other authorities to participate. Participation is usually easier for voluntary members since it doesn’t have the added psychological barrier of being forced to attend. For this reason, mandated members have difficulty with participation and are sometimes perceived as reluctant (Roth, 2005). It is important that members understand the dynamics within the group and what goals and processes are involved in being a part of that group. This essay will focus on the strategies of assisting group leaders and group members in engaging in the process of psychotherapy by providing informed consent, learning
History Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy is an umbrella term for many different therapeutic techniques, of which include Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), Cognitive Therapy, Rational Living Therapy, and Dialectical Behavior Therapy just to name a few, with each approach to therapy containing its own developmental history. The history of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy is split into three waves, with each wave containing major changes which led to the development of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy as it is today. This therapy is said to have philosophical roots.
Many theories of group counselling have borrowed ideas and approaches from psychoanalysis. The primary aim of the analytic process is reorganize the client’s personality and character structure. This aim is attained by making unconscious conflicts conscious and analysing them. Wolf (1963, 1975) developed group applications of fundamental psychoanalytic approaches such as working with transference, free association, dreams, and the historical factors of existing behaviour. The group leader relates understanding to the family-like relations that emerge among the members and between the members and the therapist.
This is the most important aspect of any group counseling, for the clients to know that they are not alone. Specifically, group therapy is a instrumental in mending all passionate and mental battles individuals experience: despondency, nervousness, annoyance, apprehension, disgrace, and so forth. People expand fearlessness through uncovering their inner part lives to others. Parts feel less alone on the planet through understanding other individuals' lives. Furthermore, understanding other individuals' issues, objectives, and arrangements helps parts better comprehend themselves.
Psychoanalytic group therapy is the model involving groups that meets face to face with therapist and it comes approximately in a group of seven to eight members. Each and everyone in the group have to contribute with their thought. Firstly some might feel a sense of rejection being in a group but those fears will fade away after they observe the rest of the group members. Apart from that, during the session, members will be able to receive valuable feedback from one another rather than depending on the therapist itself (Kleinberg, 2011). Basically, clients in groups will be able to gain insight into their resistances and defenses more dramatically in a group setting than in individual therapy.
As for individual therapy sessions, the sessions are quiet and safe and secure for the client to share. Some client’s would not like to be in a group to share their problems with others. Some client would like to be in a group counseling session to hear feedback and stories from other members to learn and grow from it. Group counseling is structured in a way that it is a big group, no privacy, everything is being shared openly and it is cheap. It can be an open or closed group depending on the type of group.