Some questions considered ...
What is Integrative Therapy? Will it help? Do I need it? How long will it take? These are just some of the many questions that may be going through your mind, especially if this is the first time you have considered talking to a psychotherapist or counsellor. You're not alone and in this next section I will try and help with some of your questions.
First of all - what is Integrative Psychotherapy?
The way I practice Integrative Psychotherapy is that I help my clients find a more satisfactory way of being in their world than they are currently experiencing. We do this by looking at various aspects of your life; history, relationships, feelings, thoughts, behaviours; and work together to find a way of helping them to function and integrate in a way that is more healthy for you. I encourage clients to explore the different aspects of themselves and try to find out what is going on in their "system" and find ways to help that system work in a more balanced way. This way of working tends to mean I work with the Internal Family Systems model in the main and sometimes Gestalt, Transactional Analysis and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to inform our work.
Will It Help?
My experience tells me that yes it will, however finding the right therapist and starting therapy at the right time for you is key to success. Research shows that the two factors most important in producing successful experiences from therapy are your motivation and our relationship. So, take your time to choose your therapist and consider if you are in the right place to start your journey.
Do I Need It?
Talking therapies are relatively new, perhaps only more readily available in the mainstream from around the 1970's or so. Attitudes to therapy are changing however to some extent are still stigmatised as only for people with mental health disorders or illnesses. This is not my view. I think of psychotherapy and counselling as appropriate responses to emotional difficulty however it is manifesting itself. For me, just like exercise and/or physical therapy is the healthy response (often) to a physical injury or distress, a talking therapy is an appropriate response to emotional injury and distress. It might be labelled anxiety, depression, stress or simply an awareness that things do not feel right. If I am not feeling emotionally well, it makes sense to me to do something that will help me become emotionally more healthy.
How Long Will It Take?
This really is the "how long is a piece of string question". Some clients come for 6 sessions, some for 60 +, it really is down to the individual. I can work on a 6 session basis however my advice is to allow for more if you can and we will review to check how you are getting on with the sessions. The type of therapy I practice generally requires that you have time to reflect and work through issues and to allow for a trusting relationship to develop between us and your system. My experience is that a longer period of therapy allows this process more chance to develop.
More questions ?
Please feel free to contact me to discuss any questions you have - I am happy to talk things through with you.
First of all - what is Integrative Psychotherapy?
The way I practice Integrative Psychotherapy is that I help my clients find a more satisfactory way of being in their world than they are currently experiencing. We do this by looking at various aspects of your life; history, relationships, feelings, thoughts, behaviours; and work together to find a way of helping them to function and integrate in a way that is more healthy for you. I encourage clients to explore the different aspects of themselves and try to find out what is going on in their "system" and find ways to help that system work in a more balanced way. This way of working tends to mean I work with the Internal Family Systems model in the main and sometimes Gestalt, Transactional Analysis and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to inform our work.
Will It Help?
My experience tells me that yes it will, however finding the right therapist and starting therapy at the right time for you is key to success. Research shows that the two factors most important in producing successful experiences from therapy are your motivation and our relationship. So, take your time to choose your therapist and consider if you are in the right place to start your journey.
Do I Need It?
Talking therapies are relatively new, perhaps only more readily available in the mainstream from around the 1970's or so. Attitudes to therapy are changing however to some extent are still stigmatised as only for people with mental health disorders or illnesses. This is not my view. I think of psychotherapy and counselling as appropriate responses to emotional difficulty however it is manifesting itself. For me, just like exercise and/or physical therapy is the healthy response (often) to a physical injury or distress, a talking therapy is an appropriate response to emotional injury and distress. It might be labelled anxiety, depression, stress or simply an awareness that things do not feel right. If I am not feeling emotionally well, it makes sense to me to do something that will help me become emotionally more healthy.
How Long Will It Take?
This really is the "how long is a piece of string question". Some clients come for 6 sessions, some for 60 +, it really is down to the individual. I can work on a 6 session basis however my advice is to allow for more if you can and we will review to check how you are getting on with the sessions. The type of therapy I practice generally requires that you have time to reflect and work through issues and to allow for a trusting relationship to develop between us and your system. My experience is that a longer period of therapy allows this process more chance to develop.
More questions ?
Please feel free to contact me to discuss any questions you have - I am happy to talk things through with you.