Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy methods are based on the theoretical frameworks of individual trends.

Rational psychotherapy

 * affects the patient through logical thought processes – interpretation, essence of the disease, solutions, advice
 * conversation is the basis
 * a widespread part of medical practice
 * it cannot be overestimated, all activity cannot be reduced to thought processes

Suggestive psychotherapy

 * the opposite of rational psychotherapy, it tries to bypass the rational component of the psyche, the patient has to accept the statements and follow them
 * the patient must be suggestible
 * takes place in an awake or hypnotic state
 * it is also a placebo effect

Hypnosis

 * a psychologically induced state of altered consciousness
 * increased suggestibility
 * several procedures
 * sleep method
 * the most common type
 * suggestions induce a feeling of sleepiness and fatigue
 * gloom, silence, monotonous speech help

Psychotherapy through empathic conversation

 * C. Rogers
 * the patient talks about what seems important to him
 * the therapist listens, responds, describes feelings, empathizes, is non-directive, friendly
 * the authenticity of the psychotherapist
 * unconditional positive regard
 * empathy

Autogenic training

 * it is based on the fact that psychological tension, activation of the vegetative system and skeletal muscle tension are related
 * by reducing skeletal muscle tension, we reduce psychological tension
 * lower level – 6 tasks:
 * weight training, heat, heart activity, breathing, abdominal organs, head
 * individual formulas - targeted at certain difficulties that the individual wants to eliminate ("I don't have a sweet tooth", "things are going well"...)

Catathymic-imaginative psychotherapy

 * relaxation is used to visualize various motifs
 * the patient completes the topics in order to put his problems into them
 * e.g. an image of a meadow - the patient fills it in with details

Exercise psychotherapy

 * basic principle – practice
 * learning new, consistent and targeted repetition of tasks and increasing the difficulty of tasks
 * on the basis of operant conditioning, conditioned reflexes, learning theory
 * elimination of bad habits
 * goal: a positive habit
 * developing desired skills
 * phobia - gradual overcoming
 * treatment sex. dysfunction (erectile dysfunction, vaginismus )

Assertiveness training

 * improving interpersonal interaction
 * enforcement of legitimate claims

Aversive therapy

 * associates unwanted activities with an unpleasant stimulus
 * treatment of alcohol dependence - apomorphine, antabuse

Systematic desensitization

 * relieves phobias
 * the patient relaxes and imagines that he is experiencing fear
 * exposure

Imitation and other techniques

 * observation of other persons
 * psychodrama

Psychoanalysis

 * treatment of severe neuroses and certain personality disorders
 * the analyst sits behind the patient's head so that the examinee cannot see him, the patient lies down
 * the patient is to say whatever comes to mind
 * one session lasts 50 minutes, 4-5 times a week, on the order of hundreds of sessions, even several years
 * the analyst responds with interpretations
 * transference – the specific relationship of the analysand to the analyst
 * countertransference – the analyst projects his unconscious wish onto the patient

Cognitive behavioral therapy

 * cognitive behavioral therapy is highly structured
 * goal oriented
 * teaches the client new skills
 * identifies distortions in thought

Group psychotherapy

 * more types:


 * 1) based on psychodrama
 * 2) based on psychoanalysis
 * 3) based on transactional analysis
 * 4) eclectically conceived

Other types of psychotherapy

 * supportive psychotherapy
 * family therapy
 * virtual reality therapy (VRET - Virtual reality exposure therapy)

Related Articles

 * Psychotherapy - primary schools