Psychotherapy - theories and methods.

• Psychoanalysis


  A comprehensive approach to understanding and treating psychological distress, rooted in the theories of Sigmund Freud
• Psychoanalysis


  • Much of human behavior is driven by unconscious impulses, desires, and memories, which are often inaccessible to conscious awareness
  • Early childhood experiences have a formative influence on personality development
  • Defense mechanisms play a role in managing internal conflicts and protecting the individual from distressing thoughts and emotions
• Id


  Represents primitive, instinctual drives and operates on the pleasure principle, seeking immediate gratification of basic needs and desires
• Ego


  Emerges to mediate between the id's demands, societal expectations, and reality constraints, operating on the reality principle to satisfy the id's impulses in a socially acceptable manner
• Superego


  Encompasses internalized societal norms, moral values, and parental influences, serving as the conscience and enforcing moral standards and ideals
• Psychosexual development


  1. Oral stage (infancy, oral gratification and dependency)

  2. Anal stage (early childhood, toilet training and control over bodily functions)

  3. Phallic stage (preschool, sexual curiosity, Oedipal and Electra complexes, superego formation)

  4. Latency (relative calm)

  5. Genital stage (mature sexual interests and intimate relationships)
• Defense mechanisms


  • Displacement
  • Denial
  • Repression
  • Sublimation
  • Projection
  • Intellectualization
  • Rationalization
  • Regression
  • Reaction formation
  • Undoing
• Other defense mechanisms


  • Acting out
  • Aim inhibition
  • Altruism
  • Avoidance
  • Compensation
  • Humor
  • Dissociation
  • Passive-aggression
  • Fantasy
  • Undoing
• Defense mechanisms may contribute to maladaptive patterns of coping if used excessively or rigidly
• Psychodynamic psychotherapy


  A therapeutic approach that delves into unconscious processes manifesting in a client's present behavior
• Psychodynamic psychotherapy


  • Its primary objective is to foster client self-awareness and understanding the impact of past experiences on current behavior
  • Enables clients to explore unresolved conflicts stemming from dysfunctional relationships in the past
  • Insight, regarded as self-realization or self-knowledge, is central to psychodynamic therapy
• Major schools of psychodynamic therapy

  • Freudian
  • Ego Psychology
  • Object Relations
  • Self-Psychology
• Freudian school


  Grounded in Sigmund Freud's initial theories, emphasizing the interplay between the id, ego, and superego
• Ego Psychology


  Derived from Freudian principles, concentrates on bolstering and preserving ego function in alignment with reality demands
• Object Relations theory


  Posits that human development is profoundly shaped by relationships with significant others
• Self-Psychology


  Explores the self's perception and its relationship with self-esteem and boundaries
• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)


  A therapeutic approach aimed at exploring the intricate connections between thoughts, emotions, and behaviors to address a wide array of mental health disorders
• Beck's cognitive model


  Hypothesizes that people's emotions and behaviors are significantly influenced by their perceptions of events rather than the events themselves
• Levels of cognition in Beck's model

  • Core beliefs
  • Dysfunctional assumptions
  • Negative automatic thoughts
• CBT


  • Empowers patients to become their own therapists by understanding their current cognitive and behavioral patterns and equipping them with tools to effect change
  • Focuses on the present and is problem-oriented, with a strong emphasis on setting mutually agreed-upon SMART goals
  • Employs various cognitive and behavioral techniques
• The effectiveness of CBT has been well-documented in numerous studies
• Hypnosis


  An altered state of consciousness involving a narrowing of awareness to information or suggestions provided by a hypnotizer
• Historical roots of hypnosis

  • Egyptians
  • Mayas
  • Greeks
  • Celtic druids
  • Hindu fakirs
  • African witch doctors
• Mesmer's method


  Involved passing magnets over a patient's body, claiming miraculous recoveries
• Depths of trance states

  • Light trance
  • Medium trance
  • Deep trance
• Approximately 5% of individuals are refractory to hypnosis induction, while 30% reach light trance, 50% achieve medium trance, and 15% experience deep hypnosis
• Indications for hypnosis therapy

  • Removal of neurotic symptoms
  • Accessing repressed or hidden memories
  • Managing aspects of addictive behavior
  • Treating pain associated with conditions like incisions, burns, and cancer