Therapeutic Approaches

THERAPEUTIC APPROACHES

My approach is intuitive and flexible and may draw from various modalities/knowledges:

Psycho-education: Providing relevant information about psychological problems and treatments available.

Psychoanalytic or psychodynamic psychotherapy:

Psychotherapy is talk-therapy usually on a regular (at least weekly), longer term basis. It aims to cultivate safety and containment to explore the inner world in depth. It aims to foster curiosity about one’s own inner world and the experiences and relationships that shape our psyche. Psychotherapy aims to understand and change complex, deap-seated and often unconscious patterns, thereby reducing symptoms and alleviating distress. Unconscious patterns in the inner world can become enacted in the relationship with therapist (transference). This process can profoundly help to bring unconscious patterns to light. The regularity of the work encourages safety to free-associate, to hold uncertainty, and to grapple with the origin, meaning, and function of psychological patterns. Ultimately this approach brings about deep psychological freedom and flexibility to live with more choice, spontaneity and authenticity.

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): ACT is derived from the core message about accepting what is out of your personal control and committing to doing what you can do to improve and enrich your life. ACT focuses on:

  • Learning a philosophical approach and the practical skills to deal with your painful thoughts and feelings effectively – in such a way that they have much less negative impact and influence over your life.

  • Cultivating a mindful ‘observing self’ that can notice what is going on in the present moment with curiosity rather than judgment or over-identification.

  • Practicing ‘cognitive defusion’ or stepping back from the mind and noticing thoughts come and go, rather than getting entangled in them. ACT views thoughts as ‘just thoughts’, not necessarily important or factual. In a ‘defused’ stance, one can watch their thoughts curiously without taking them literally, identifying with them, or reacting to them.

  • Helping you to clarify what is truly important and meaningful to you – i.e. your values – then using that knowledge to guide, inspire and motivate you to change your life for the better.

Mindful Self-compassion (MSC) Training: A scientific approach involving step-by-step training on breaking free from harsh self-judgments, impossible standards, and shame in order to cultivate emotional well-being. It involves psycho-education, guided exercises, meditations, and informal practices. It aims at helping people befriend themselves, look after themselves, and accept themselves unconditionally. This approach acknowledges that suffering, failure, mistakes, and flaws are inevitable and that these experiences of vulnerability connect us to each other. This approach gives the tools to be kind and warm to ourselves, especially when we’re struggling, and to encourage and support ourselves towards our goals. It helps us to be present with our feelings in the moment, without exaggerating them or denying them. It gives us the tools to accept ourselves with compassion and then extend this to others to form more fulfilling relationships.

Emotion Focused Therapy (EFT): EFT proposes that emotion at its core is an innate and adaptive system that has evolved to help us survive and thrive. Emotions are connected to our most essential needs. They rapidly alert us to situations important to our well-being. They also prepare and guide us to take action towards meeting our needs. EFT involves both a therapeutic style and experiential processes designed to help individuals to better identify, experience, explore, make sense of, transform, and more flexibly manage their emotions. As a result, persons receiving EFT treatment become more skillful in understanding and responding to their emotions in order to live vitally and adaptively.

Cognitive Behaviour Therapy: There are specific CBT treatments for different psychological problems. Common elements of CBT include:

  • Uncovering negative core beliefs that lead to negative interpretations

  • Noticing and changing unhelpful thoughts

  • Changing unhelpful patterns of behaving

  • Doing structured behavioural change experiments

  • Relaxation training, encompassing positive visualisation, breathing techniques, muscle relaxation, and mindfulness strategies.

  • Exposure therapy and systematic desensitisation (in treatment of anxiety disorders)

  • Exposure and response prevention (in obsessive compulsive disorder)