A counselor can help patients overcome various forms of challenges, from anxiety or addiction, to domestic abuse or depression. Some experts specialize in specific areas like those mentioned here.
Sigmund Freud and Carl Rogers were two pioneers in counseling. They introduced concepts and techniques which are now standard in therapy practices today.
Psychotherapy Counselor
Psychotherapy involves discussing emotional issues with a trained professional who is equipped to listen and guide clients. Psychotherapy may address various concerns such as relieving excessive stress, managing a medical condition better or improving relationships. Sessions may focus on specific challenges or longer-term issues from the past.
Patients can experience various emotions during sessions, from crying or anger to peace and relaxation. Ultimately, the success of treatment depends on how invested a patient is in his or her relationship and trust their therapist fosters.
Finding a therapist with appropriate qualifications and who inspires trust is of vital importance. Many opt to undergo psychotherapy before or alongside taking medications; however, therapy sessions may also prove helpful even without medication being necessary.
Group Counseling
Group counseling allows clients to develop and practice coping skills in an intimate, safe setting, while serving as an avenue of hope for those feeling isolated or depressed.
The therapist acts as a facilitator and ensures members understand that they are not alone. Furthermore, members who share similar experiences can relate and form trusting bonds between themselves.
These groups provide students with support in an open, collaborative atmosphere throughout the semester to manage academic and clinical stressors in a warm, safe setting. Here, students learn strategies for dealing with emotional distress associated with dental and nursing school studies as well as developing self-care techniques and managing current relationships/romantic relations by unpacking strategies to navigate them and establish healthy boundaries.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Counselor
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is an evidence-based practice which addresses how emotions and thoughts influence behaviors, making it a potency tool in combatting mental health conditions such as depression.
Aaron Beck pioneered Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in the 1960s after becoming disillusioned with Freudian psychoanalysis and looking for more empirical forms of treatment. He found that helping depressed patients recognize and challenge automatic negative thoughts had an immediate positive effect on their symptoms; drawing from Albert Ellis’ rational emotive behavior therapy theories as well, Beck also devised a short-term and goal-oriented therapy approach that relied heavily on CBT.
Your therapist will assist in recognizing unhealthy emotions, beliefs and habits through interactive question-and-answer sessions and journaling, before teaching skills that will allow you to change these unhelpful patterns.
Dialectical Behavior Therapy
DBT is an effective psychotherapy for those struggling with intense emotions and self-injury behaviors. Therapists teach clients communication and assertiveness skills so they can strengthen relationships with others; additionally, they offer techniques for controlling emotions and behaviors so they can remain present in their lives.
Clients are encouraged to use daily “diary cards” to track their feelings, urges and behavior. At therapy sessions they bring these cards in order to review them with their therapist and identify patterns of behavior that have arisen over time. In between sessions clients may also receive coaching on how best to use their new skills.
Finding a therapist offering dialectical behavior therapy may be difficult, so ask friends and family members for referrals or search online through state psychological associations to see if there’s someone available who treats the condition you have an interest in treating.
EMDR
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, commonly referred to as EMDR, is an effective therapy method that can assist individuals in recovering from trauma. EMDR therapy can be effective against PTSD, complicated grief and other disorders with trauma-based components.
At first, a counselor will collect information about their client as well as any upsetting memories or events they want to address in therapy sessions or over time. This initial step may take several sessions or several months.
Next, a therapist helps their client select an image representing an upsetting event and an affirmative belief about it. After selecting these elements, bilateral stimulation (eye movements, tapping or oscillating tones) may be employed in order to help reprocess these negative images into something that feels more manageable for them. Furthermore, their support also includes monitoring any lingering body sensations or emotions between sessions.