What “Good Therapy” should be ….
Good therapy should reduce distress and quickly, and instil hope for positive change in the very first session.
With over 400 & possibly a lot more types of therapy (call it psychotherapy, call it counselling, it really doesn’t matter) out there it’s no wonder people find it confusing. I’m going to focus on the UK, because that’s where I practice, but what I have to say applies pretty much anywhere. The range of emotional difficulties people present with is universal and what really matters in “good therapy” is that people are relieved of the distress they feel. The modality that the therapist follows, or what letters they have after their name, matters not if they cannot get their client feeling (1) less distressed (2) quickly and (3) hope that change for the better has started & will improve with each session. A good therapist will achieve this in the very first session and build on it in each subsequent session.
A good therapist will also design the client therapy to be as short as possible and not insist on naval gazing in your past. The past is only relevant to today to the extent that memories & events from the past are causing emotional distress in the present. The objective has to be helping the client feel calmer and less distressed today (lowering emotional arousal). Only then can therapy start to be effective. An emotionally aroused brain is not a thinking brain and a good therapist will know that having the client able to think more clearly is key to early success and brief intervention.
When someone is suffering emotional distress and seeking help it is usually because they feel stuck. Elaborate psychodynamic interpretations or passive active listening isn’t going to help much. For people with symptoms of depression, anxiety, anger, phobia, trauma, compulsions, addictions and the like, the behaviour feels involuntary and they want practical help to change it. and change it quickly. The therapy needs to be pro-active and the therapist needs to take the lead, being able to employ a wide range of skills while remaining sensitive & responsive to the client’s wider life … their home & family, their work and other social connections.
If you’d like to discuss this some more with me please feel free to email george@beingreconnected.com