Therapeutic Approach
What is a therapeutic approach? It is the way that a counselor/therapist works with a client. Our counselors get to know each of their client’s personalities, needs and hopes for therapy and tailor approaches that would work best for them. Below is a list of approaches that our counselors/therapists are trained in a utilize with clients/couples.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Person-Centered Therapy (PCT)
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Gottman Method Couple’s Therapy (GMCT)
Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR)
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is an evidenced based therapeutic approach which identifies automatic thoughts that lead to certain emotions and behaviors. According to American Psychological Association, “CBT treatment usually involves efforts to change thinking patterns. These strategies might include:
Learning to recognize one’s distortions in thinking that are creating problems, and then to reevaluate them in light of reality.
Gaining a better understanding of the behavior and motivation of others.
Using problem-solving skills to cope with difficult situations.
Learning to develop a greater sense of confidence in one’s own abilities.”
Automatic thoughts come from our core beliefs. Core beliefs are developed from our early experiences and shape the way we view the world, ourselves or our future. CBT is most beneficial when clients complete CBT related homework in order to draw more awareness of how negative thinking affects negative emotions.
The Mayo Clinic has noted certain disorders that may benefit from CBT. This disorders include:
Depression
Anxiety disorders
Phobias
PTSD
Sleep disorders
Eating disorders
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
Substance use disorders
Bipolar disorders
Schizophrenia
Sexual disorders
Person-Centered Therapy
Person-centered therapy, also referred to as non-directive, client-centered, or Rogerian therapy, was pioneered by Carl Rogers in the early 1940s. This form of psychotherapy is grounded in the idea that people are inherently motivated toward achieving positive psychological functioning. The client is believed to be the expert in their life and leads the general direction of therapy, while the therapist takes a non-directive role. This activity reviews person-centered therapy and highlights the role of the interprofessional team in improving care for patients who undergo person-centered therapy.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
The goal of ACT is to create a rich and meaningful life, while accepting the pain that inevitably goes with it. “ACT” is a good abbreviation, because this therapy is about taking effective action guided by our deepest values and in which we are fully present and engaged. It is only through mindful action that we can create a meaningful life. Of course, as we attempt to create such a life, we will encounter all sorts of barriers, in the form of unpleasant and unwanted "private experiences" (thoughts, images, feelings, sensations, urges, and memories.) ACT teaches mindfulness skills as an effective way to handle these private experiences.
Gottman Method Couple’s Therapy
Gottman Method Couple’s Therapy provides research based tools and understanding for relationships. The Gottman approach looks at strengths and weaknesses within your romantic relationship. The beginning sessions are an assessment to look at those strengths and weaknesses before treatment begins. The first session brings the couple together to discuss their presenting concerns and history. The next (second) session the couple meet with the therapist to discuss their upbringing, previous relationships and any other personal data. During this week the couple is also completing an online questionnaire through the Gottman Institute called the Gottman Connect. This is an online questionnaire that is completed separately. During the last assessment session (third) the therapist will provide the couple with the results of the online questionnaire, determine couple’s motivation to begin treatment, and develop therapeutic goals. Here is a link to take a quick and free quiz: https://www.gottman.com/how-well-do-you-know-your-partner/.
According the Gottman Method, “Some of the relationship issues that may be addressed in therapy include:
Frequent conflict and arguments
Poor communication
Emotionally distanced couples on the verge of separation
Specific problems such as sexual difficulties, infidelity, money, and parenting”
Please note, insurance companies do not cover couple’s counseling as it’s considered “relationship issues” and not a mental health disorder.
Psychodynamic Therapy
Psychodynamic therapy is an in-depth form of talk therapy based on the theories and principles of psychoanalysis. In effect, talking about problems in a therapeutic setting can be extremely valuable for the individual. Comparatively, psychodynamic therapy is less focused on the patient-therapist relationship and more focused on the patient’s relationship with their external world.
Narrative Therapy
Narrative therapy is a form of counseling that views people as separate from their problems and destructive behaviors. This allows clients to get some distance from the difficulty they face; this helps them to see how it might actually be helping or protecting them, more than it is hurting them. With this perspective, individuals feel more empowered to make changes in their thought patterns and behavior and “rewrite” their life story for a future that reflects who they really are, what they are capable of, and what their purpose is, separate from their problems.
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)
EMDR is a form of psychotherapy that helps individuals reduce feelings of distress associated with traumatic experiences and memories. During EMDR therapy the client attends to emotionally disturbing material in brief sequential doses while simultaneously focusing on an external stimulus. Therapist directed lateral eye movements are the most commonly used external stimulus but a variety of other stimuli including hand-tapping and audio stimulation are often used (Shapiro, 1991).
EMDR therapy uses a three pronged protocol:
(1) the past events that have laid the groundwork for dysfunction are processed, forging new associative links with adaptive information
(2) the current circumstances that elicit distress are targeted, and internal and external triggers are desensitized
(3) imaginal templates of future events are incorporated, to assist the client in acquiring the skills needed for adaptive functioning*
Resources:
https://www.apa.org/ptsd-guideline/patients-and-families/cognitive-behavioral
https://www.psychotherapy.net/article/Acceptance-and-Commitment-Therapy-ACT#section-the-goal-of-act
https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/cognitive-behavioral-therapy/about/pac-20384610
* https://www.emdr.com/what-is-emdr/
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapy-types/psychodynamic-therapy