Psychotherapy is a type of approach used to help people deal with their emotions and feelings, as well as to help treat some mental problems. The methods used are based on different techniques, depending on the specialty of each therapist, who can be a psychologist or psychiatrist.
Regardless of the type used, all techniques consist of communicating with a therapist, in order to change thoughts and behaviors, and the duration of each session and the number of sessions to be held, depends on the needs of each person.
How it is done
Psychotherapy sessions are usually held in the office of a psychologist or psychiatrist and last between 30 and 50 minutes, in which the person is sitting or lying on a sofa, called a divan, so that they feel comfortable and talk about their feelings.
Psychotherapy can be carried out with children and adults, individually or in a group of friends, from work or family, and the number of sessions will be defined by the therapist.
What is it for
Psychotherapy can be useful in the treatment of several mental health problems, including:
- Anxiety disorders such as obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), phobias, panic disorder or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD); Mood disorders such as depression or bipolar disorder; Addictions such as alcoholism, drug addiction or compulsive gambling; Eating disorders such as anorexia or bulimia; Personality disorders, such as borderline personality disorder or dependent personality disorder; Schizophrenia or other psychotic disorders. Check out how to identify the most common mental disorders.
However, psychotherapy can be used by people who do not have any mental disorders and can help in resolving conflicts, relieving stress and anxiety, coping with situations such as the death of a loved one, recovering from trauma and support for negative feelings caused by the diagnosis of other diseases such as cancer or diabetes.
In most cases, psychotherapy is applied in conjunction with medications recommended by the psychiatrist, depending on the person's health condition, and should always be performed with a trained therapist.
In addition, the performance of psychotherapy does not generate risks for the person, it can only provoke sad or painful feelings and experiences that pass through the sessions.
Main types
There are several types of psychotherapy with different goals and techniques, the main ones being:
- Behavioral cognitive: consists of helping the person to solve personal problems by transforming negative behaviors and feelings into positive ones; Dialectical behavior: it is based on teaching ways to resolve emotions harmful to the person; Psychoanalytic: it is the type in which one seeks to understand consciousness and unconscious feelings, helping to resolve internal conflicts; Existential: it is characterized in the understanding of the reasons for the existence of each person, helping in the understanding that each choice results in a situation; Jungian: also known as analytical, it is based on the idea of the influence of personality on personal behaviors; Psychodynamics: it consists of the idea that behavior and mental well-being are influenced by childhood experiences and inappropriate thoughts or feelings that are in the unconscious; Interpersonal: is focused on solving relationship problems, improving the way of dealing with other people.
In all types of psychotherapy it is important to maintain a relationship of trust between the person and their therapist, as together they will define the objectives and steps for solving each situation, behavior or problem.
Why do
Psychotherapy is an important resource in psychology that leads to self-knowledge and improves quality of life and physical and emotional well-being, helping people to control their emotions and better deal with feelings of anger and sadness.
Often, during a session, when talking about experiences, it is possible to cry or feel upset, but the therapist will help to build ways to deal with current and past problems.
In addition, conversations with the therapist are confidential and free from personal judgment, that is, you will not be told what is right or wrong, so there is no need to be ashamed or afraid to expose emotions or feelings.
