Looks like no one added any tags here yet for you.
psychotherapy
treatment involving psychological techniques; consists of interactions between a trained therapist and someone seeking to overcome psychological difficulties or achieve personal growth
eclectic approach
an approach to psychotherapy that uses techniques from various forms of therapy
around 1/3 of therapists report using this
insight-oriented vs. action-oriented
why vs. what to do about it
biomedical therapy
prescribed mediations or procedures that act directly on the person’s physiology
psychodynamic therapy
therapy based on the psychoanalytic tradition; explores unconscious forces and childhood experiences, and seeks to enhance self-insight
psychodynamic therapy difference from psychoanalysis
psychodynamic therapy helps with the current symptoms/relationships (vs. early childhood events/understanding the unconscious)
better interpersonal functioning → decreased symptoms
face-to-face therapy (vs. laying on couch)
less frequent sessions (1-2x//week vs. several times/week)
total time in therapy → weeks or months (vs. year(s))
goal of psychodynamic therapy
relief from symptoms
humanistic therapy
a mental health approach that emphasizes the importance of being your true self in order to lead the most fulfilling life
client-centered therapy
therapist uses active listening with a genuine, accepting, empathic environment to facilitate clients’ growth
Carl Rogers
developed client-centered therapy
unconditional positive regard
caring, accepting, nonjudgmental attitude that would help clients develop self-awareness and self-acceptance
where problems originate from according to humanistic therapy
it’s the result of feelings of alienation/loneliness → due to not achieving full potential
goal of humanistic therapy
understand and reflect back client’s experience allowing client to grow naturally (improve self-awareness); achieve congruence between ideal and actual self
behavior therapy
applies learning principles to the elimination of unwanted behaviors
problem for behavior therapy
view the maladaptive behaviors as the problem versus unconscious feelings or lack of self-awareness
goal of behavior therapy
change the maladaptive behaviors to constructive ones
exposure therapy
behavioral techniques such as systematic desensitization and virtual reality exposure therapy that treat anxieties by exposing people to the thing they fear and avoid
systematic desensitization
associates a pleasant relaxed state with gradually increasing anxiety-triggering stimuli
cognitive therapy
teaches people new, more adaptive ways of thinking; based on the assumption that thoughts intervene between events and our emotional reactions (action vs. insight)
cognitive reconstructing
questioning automatic beliefs, assumptions, and predictions that lead to negative emotions & to replace negative thinking with more positive and realistic beliefs
cognitive-behavioral therapy
popular integrative therapy that combines cognitive therapy (changing negative thought patterns) with behavior therapy (changing behavior)
most widely practiced theory
Schwartz et al.’s finding in their study on CBT and OCD
9 people with OCD were examined using PET scans before and after 10 weeks of CBT: (reframed urge to hand wash as due to “abnormal brain activity”; spent 15 minutes in enjoyable activity instead)
decreased activation in caudate nucleus follow CBT → normalized brain activity
how psychotherapies work (the 3 common ingredients)
hope
new perspective → new behaviors
caring relationship with therapist (empathic, communicate care and concern, trustworthy)
(therapeutic alliance)
therapeutic alliance
bond of trust and mutual understanding between a therapist and client, who work together constructively to overcome the client’s problem
antipsychotic drugs
used to treat schizophrenia and other forms of severe thought disorder
how antipsychotic drugs work:
helps my mimicking dopamine (blocks dopamine receptors) therefore reduces hallucinations and paranoia
side effects of antipsychotic drugs
sluggishness, tremors, twitches, and tar dive dyskinesia
anti-anxiety drugs
used to control anxiety and agitation
how anti-anxiety drugs work
helps by suppressing central nervous system functioning
increases effect of GABA (inhibitory effect) on cells
side effects of anti-anxiety drugs
addiction
antidepressant drugs
used to treat depression, anxiety disorders, OCD, and PTSD
how antidepressant drugs work
helps by increasing norepinephrine and serotonin which leads to increased arousal and improved mood
side effects of antidepressant drugs
dry mouth, weight gain, hypertension, dizziness, decreased sexual desire
cases where drug therapies are best:
for cases of severe depression and when other routes have not been effective
when treatment other than drug therapy should be used:
for mild or moderate depression and anxiety - exercise, cognitive therapy/CBT, combination of therapy + medication)
Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT)
biomedical therapy for severely depressed patients in which a brief electric current is sent through the brain of an anesthetized patient
3x/week for 2-4 weeks
80% of people see improvement
how Christians should view therapy
it’s not consistent with the Bible → God’s grace can come in many forms (medications, friends, therapists)
roles churches can play in helping people
social support network, Stephen ministers, pastoral counseling, accountability
from a Christian perspective, therapeutic interventions/therapy should:
provide empathy, caring concern, and unconditional acceptance — value as God’s child, unconditional acceptance from God (relational theme)
be present/future oriented — consider the future choices and prioritize things that will help change your current situation (responsible limited agency)
emphasize responsibility and accountability (responsible limited agency) — but recognize not all thoughts and behaviors are controllable; may not make the best choice ourselves (brokenness)
appreciate biological constraints and social context — innate temperaments/tendencies that make self-regulation difficult; tough social/environmental factors (embodied & responsible limited agency)
be action-oriented and less insight oriented — physical action; greater change (embodied)
work on establishing purpose and meaningful goals — what do we replace the symptoms with? (meaning seeking)