Group Psychotherapy - Essay Example

? Group Psychotherapy Task Psychotherapy Introduction Psychotherapy de s the treatment administered to patients with mental and behavioral disorders. The therapist assesses the antisocial behaviors, feelings and thoughts of a patient before proceeding with remedial measures (Yalom & Leszcz, 2005). Moreover, the client is comprehends the means of handling issues that affect his well-being. In most cases, psychotherapy is initiated in groups by therapists in medical institutions, schools and other public places. Prior to making a choice on the therapy for the ailment, a patient is consulted to identify his/her condition. It is important to plan and implement for psychotherapy for it to be successful as discussed in this piece. Planning and implementing group psychotherapy to adults clients A Psychotherapist carries out the planning and the implementation of group psychotherapy. These professionals offer psychotherapy services in medical institutions or at home. According to research, adults are prone to suffer ailments that require the services of therapists within populations. Indeed, relationship issues are the leading cause of problems that force adults to seek the services of physiotherapists (Yalom & Leszcz, 2005). Since loneliness and stress are the most common disorders handled by psychotherapist, it is advisable to solve such cases in groups (Yalom & Leszcz, 2005). Psychotherapists plan on the approaches to use in carrying out their duties. At first, when handling adults having relationship problems, psychotherapists counsel clients in groups to find out their needs. Thereafter, a psychotherapist designs the procedures for use in carrying out the group therapy. A partnership of all the affiliates involved in the provision of psychotherapy services is imminent. Indeed, an experienced psychotherapist consults widely before administering psychotherapy services to the sick adults (Yalom & Leszcz, 2005). After the identification of the causes of relationship problems among adults, it is necessary for a psychotherapist to counsel the patients as a group before guiding them on the approaches to handling relationship challenges (Corey, Corey & Callanan, 2011). This is the first stage in handling patients having relationship problems. Indeed, a psychotherapist will use a more inclusive approach such as encouraging patients to join support groups that solve societal relationship problems. There are situations when the universality approach is utilized since most patients share similar problems in the relationship. Preferably, therapy is available to clients in groups as supported by Yalom & Leszcz (2005). Secondly, a psychotherapist is required to utilize the altruism strategy in planning and implementation of psychotherapy. As such, the adults are collectively taught on the modes they can use to inspire themselves in dealing with relationship challenges. During psychotherapy, sharing of information has to be encouraged in all categories therapy. For example, clients sharing their experiences can lead to healing in some instances. Consequently, a psychotherapist will consult widely when dealing with adult patients. By doing so, a psychotherapist can obtain patients information such as their medical history that will guide them in dealing with them in groups. Self-understanding among adults is key in administering therapy; this will make it easier in grouping patients of the same ailments. Moreover, a drama therapy will be organized to signify to the adults the benefits of solving problems in groups (Yalom & Leszcz, 2005). There are instances that non-verbal therapy will be used to patients. For example, musical therapy is instrumental whilst administering therapy to adult clients. This is applicable because people are more amenable to therapy that they can easily familiarize themselves with; thus the need of treating individuals in groups. They will learn from each other. Lastly, in implementing group therapy a psychotherapist has to group clients of different therapies to distinguish the approaches for administering therapy. Group therapy is preferable since it addresses ailments that affect most of the populace based on its stability. Differences between children and adult psychotherapy groups Children and adult sessions are designed differently because of the diverse needs expressed by both parties. Adults can categorize their detailed needs and experiences; thus, guiding the counselor to the basis of the concerns. This is because adults have the intellectual and linguistic capability to express themselves. Hence, adults can concentrate for long hours in talks an approach that may not bear fruit with children. Firstly, counseling for children should consider their developmental needs irrespective of the child’s age. When dealing with children, the intervention of an adult should review and determine the help that the child needs. Children may fall short to replicate on their thoughts and feelings but will express them with anti-social behavior. Consequently, children of a younger age may lack the phrases and words to express their feelings and experiences (Yalom & Leszcz, 2005). Their vocabulary is not fully developed limiting their verbal communication. As a result, children will express themselves with deviant behavior such as lying, bouts of anger, reclusive behavior and violence. Conducting group psychotherapy on children entails focusing on the child’s movement, language development and cognitive development while providing a serene environment for social input. In comparison, children with anxiety and adjustment disorders lose their concentration faster compared to adults. To conduct a psychotherapy group for these children, the therapist must engineer the program to maintain interest and focus throughout the session. The sittings are designed with special inputs to help children obtain the needed skills. Children are fascinated with rigorous activities that comprise of movement and use of physically attractive features (Yalom & Leszcz, 2005). The approach entails carefully designed programs and special knowledge depending on the age and the needs of the child. The psychotherapist uses colorful toys that are appealing to the eyes and are fun to play with these aids in movement and relieves stress for the child. It can also help to open up a conversation between the therapist and the child. The child may draw out a depiction, which the assessor will use to read the mind of the child. Additionally, the psychotherapist focuses on engaging the parents of the child in all session as this aids in the bonding process of the mother and the child. It also removes insecurity by giving the child the confidence that it requires. Planning and implementing a process group for teenagers The teen years can be very problematic for both parents and the teenagers. Teens encounter new pressures in life that are within the normal spectrum of growth. However, some are not capable of responding to these pressures in reasonable ways; thus, requiring the intervention of a counselor. Teens are within the growth phase whereby they experiment on new information, experience mood changes, physical changes and identity issues (Yalom & Leszcz, 2005). Adolescents also have assorted experiences in their lives as evident in family problems, relationships issues, trust issues and personality problems that may often result in very low or very high self-esteem, aggression, depression and feelings of anxiety. Therapy can help adolescents to cope with these happenings and find reasonable approaches and skills to solve their problems. According to Yalom & Leszcz (2005), group psychotherapy aims at improving a teen’s ability to cope with difficult life experiences. It involves interpersonal interactions to help individuals cope with difficult, emotional experiences and encourage self-development and personal development of individual members. Participants divulge their experiences under the guidance of a therapist who assesses the depth of the problem and devices positive approaches. A teen’s behavior is symbolic of a larger troubling event within the family or the environment. Teenager’s often do not fancy sharing their feelings, and they will retract statements and questions by claiming that they do not know the answers. The best approach is to open up communication by creating a safe assurance that they can trust an individual, and they can be helped with their problems (Yalom & Leszcz, 2005). The therapist must identify the exact needs of the individual adolescent. Primary intervention methods involve determining the teenager’s family background and experiences that might affect the general welfare and growth of the teen. Family therapy is vital in the analysis stage; thus, should serve as the initial starting point for determining the content of the session. While adults react differently to their experiences, a teen’s world is centered on the family. Children bore to families should view the world with the family as the point of reference (Yalom & Leszcz, 2005). A troubled adolescent may exude bad tendencies at school; nonetheless, it is likely that the problem they are displaying is because of an issue that occurred at home. It can be a misunderstanding on a minor issue or something serious such as marital breakup. Addressing the child alone fails to correct the anti-social behavior hence the need to offer family therapy. Adolescents are more reflective on their feelings and thoughts and may fail to present themselves sufficiently to the therapist. They may lack the language to use to present their feelings, or they may not understand what is wrong with them (Yalom & Leszcz, 2005). As a result, practical and theoretical sessions should be conducted to assist the success of the group. Furthermore, therapy for teenagers should be designed in a more attractive rigorous manner. This is because adolescents get easily bored and more often will get bored of the traditional sit in adult therapy. Consequently, the teenagers need to be engaging in playful outdoor activities, in conjunction with round groups. Consequently, adolescents will comprehend more when motion pictures, poems and novels are used to communicate rather than long boring lectures. Teen patients view the movie or read a novel together (Corey, Corey & Callanan, 2011). They later collectively discuss the characters, the plot, the motivation and the lessons learned. In videos, sound tracks and background features are also analyzed. The therapist then analyses the responses and relates it to personal experiences of individual members. Conclusion Treatment should cover cognitive approaches that help to advance communication, problem solving ability, anger management and impulse management. The family should be involved, as it is the initial learning environment for a child. It is from the family that a child gathers confidence and skills needed to cope with the outside life. References Corey, G., Corey, M. S., & Callanan, P. (2011). Issues and ethics in the helping professions. Belmont, Calif: Brooks/Cole. Yalom, I. D., & Leszcz, M. (2005). The theory and practice of group psychotherapy. New York, NY: Basic Books. Read More