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Cognitive behavioral therapy

 

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Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a short-term treatment designed to help clients cope with specific problems.

 

While other types of therapy may take several years to complete, cognitive behavioral therapy typically involves 10 to 20 sessions.

 

The purpose of cognitive behavioral therapy is to change our way of thinking and the behaviors associated with our thought processes.

 

When faced with stressful situations, our minds automatically fill with intrusive thoughts that greatly influence our moods and emotions. This can cause us to overreact, feel sick, or become agitated. The reason for this is that we make false assumptions about the significance of the circumstance based on an unreliable, subjective truth.

 

CBT teaches clients to recognize and change disturbing thought processes that lead to negative emotions and destructive behavior.

 

The way we think is like wearing glasses that make us see the whole world in a certain light. This type of therapy sharpens our awareness of how we perceive things, and we learn how we can shape our reality with our thoughts and behavior.

 

We all ultimately shape our own world…

Depth psychology-based psychotherapy

Depth psychology-based psychotherapy has developed from classical psychoanalysis.

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Like psychoanalysis, this form of therapy is based on the assumption that the cause of psychological problems lies in unconscious mental conflicts that are to be explored in more detail in therapy.

 

The underlying assumption is that you can better cope with the problems in your daily life if you are aware of where they come from.

 

Compared to classical psychoanalysis, in which the individual sessions proceed freely and without a predetermined structure, depth psychology-based psychotherapy is more goal-oriented.

 

The starting point is current psychological or social conflicts. These trigger memories of experiences during childhood and adolescence, which are then linked to the current situation.

 

Depth psychology-based psychotherapy usually continues for six months.

 

This therapy requires the willingness of the patient to deal with their own emotions and conflicts.

 

The effectiveness of psychodynamic therapies has been scientifically proven for depression, anxiety and panic disorders, post-traumatic disorders, and personality disorders.

Schema therapy

Schema therapy was developed by Jeffrey Young in the United States in the 1990s.

 

Schema therapy is used primarily to treat pronounced, long-lasting mental disorders, such as personality disorders, chronic depression, long-lasting anxiety disorders, substance abuse, or long-standing relationship disorders.

 

Schema therapy is based on the methods of cognitive behavioral therapy and expands on them with experience- and action-oriented approaches.

 

Schema therapy also includes elements from other schools of therapy, such as Gestalt therapy and depth psychology. This is why it is considered a very integrative therapeutic approach.

 

The case concept, the work with fixed therapy goals, and the transparent, “technical” approach are based on behavior therapy.

 

Depth psychology suggests that early experiences shape our later experiences and behavior to such an extent that we have to deal with them.

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How does schema therapy differ from other therapies

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Behavioral therapy focuses on current problems, but—like depth psychology—it also looks at the biographical background (past) of these problems.

 

It also involves working with so-called emotion-focused techniques, such as guided imagery (imagination journey).

 

The therapist is direct, warm-hearted, and does not hold back his opinion.

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What is the same in Schema therapy as in any other therapy?

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The goals of therapy should be clear. When a person does not have a present mental health issue, therapy is not possible.

 

It makes sense to first understand our own problematic patterns and then change them in the next step. Once we have a good understanding of something, it is much easier to change.

 

The client must be motivated, stick with it, and keep making an effort to implement the insights gained from therapy in their life.

 

In Schema therapy, change does not happen “on its own.”

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