What You Need To Know About Psychotherapy And Its Benefits
You probably hear the term “psychotherapy” often or you’ve read something about the concept somewhere, but what exactly does it mean? Unless you are a psychotherapist or have a fine grasp of the field, you may have only a vague idea of what it means or entails. In this article, you will learn more about psychotherapy and some of its benefits. Let’s delve into it, shall we?
What Is Psychotherapy?
Also known as talk therapy, psychotherapy is a treatment method for people experiencing a wide range of mental and emotional issues. Although there are several misconceptions and stigma associated with psychotherapy, this practice helps treat emotional and mental problems that can hinder physical and mental wellbeing. In some cases, psychotherapy is used to complement medication or other types of therapies when treating certain mental health conditions. Depending on the complexity and duration of the problem, psychotherapy can be long-term or short-term. There are different types of psychotherapy, let’s take a look at these:
What Are The Types Of Psychotherapy?
As I mentioned earlier, there are several different types of psychotherapy. Most mental health professionals at Energetics Institute use these various types of psychotherapy to treat specific types of mental issues. The choice of psychotherapy type largely depends on the type of mental or emotional issue the patient is experiencing and how long he or she has been experiencing this issue. It is not uncommon for mental health professionals to combine different types of psychotherapy to achieve the desired result. Some of the different types of psychotherapy are as follow:
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
This type of psychotherapy is most effective for treating a wide range of disorders including trauma, anxiety, depression, sleeping and eating disorders, etc. CBT works by helping the patient identify and change cognitive and behavioral patterns that can cause harm by replacing these thoughts and behaviors with more functional ones.
Interpersonal Therapy (IPT)
Interpersonal therapy is mostly used to treat depression. This type of psychotherapy is best used as a short-term form of treatment.
Dialectical Behavior Therapy
Dialectical behavior therapy is a variant of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and it’s mostly used to treat people with PTSD, borderline personality disorder, eating disorders, and individuals with chronic suicidal thoughts.
Other types of psychotherapy include psychodynamic therapy and supportive therapy. Each type of psychotherapy can be combined with other therapy types such as creative arts therapy or play therapy to achieve maximum results.
What Are The Benefits Of Psychotherapy?
Psychotherapy has many advantages, which is why it is the most common way to treat mental issues of varying degrees. Some of the benefits of psychotherapy are as follow:
Psychotherapy Helps Treat Depression
If you were asked to mention five types of mental health conditions you know, the chances are that you’ll most likely mention depression, and that’s because it is one of the most common mental health conditions in the world. Depression is often characterized by changes in sleeping and eating patterns, a loss of motivation, or a constant feeling of guilt or misery.
While there’s a pattern to how depression manifests, the signals often vary from person to person. When left untreated, depression can negatively affect your daily routine, and may ultimately lead to suicidal or harmful thoughts. Many mental health professionals use psychotherapy to treat people with depression.
Psychotherapy allows both the therapist and affected individual to investigate possible sources or triggers of depression and swiftly handle them. Psychotherapy can be used in treating the different types of depression, including Depressive Disorder, Dysthymia, as well as Seasonal Affective Disorder.
Psychotherapy Helps You Find Balance
Even if you do not notice anything off about your mental health, you can still get therapy to help prevent any potential mental stress. Psychotherapy is excellent for helping you slow down and take a breather when things get overwhelming. It is generally great for improving different aspects of your life including your career, relationships, and personal development.
Psychotherapy Ameliorates Anxiety
Another common mental health condition is anxiety. Most people with depression often experience anxiety as well. People with anxiety often live in a constant state of paranoia and struggle to control their emotions. They are also prone to struggle with communication especially in social gatherings. Anxiety is also often characterized by extreme self-consciousness or nervousness. There are different forms of anxiety, these include Generalized Anxiety Selective Mutism, Phobias, and Social Anxiety.
Psychotherapy is one of the best ways to treat anxiety. It helps people with anxiety identify the underlying causes of their condition and work towards understanding and controlling their emotions.
Psychotherapy Is Great For Improving Relationships
You probably didn’t expect this but psychotherapy has been proven to effectively heal relationships, especially in cases where relationships feel strained. If an individual is struggling to maintain a connection or relationship with people around him or her, a mental health expert may use psychotherapy to help improve communication and find out the source of the disconnect. This is mostly the case for marriage counseling, couple and family therapies.
The many benefits of psychotherapy make it one of the best and most common ways to treat mental conditions of different types and complexities. Even if you do not experience any mental issues, getting psychotherapy is still a good call since it supports and improves mental and emotional health.
