Psychotherapist?

Question

Psychotherapists, what are they? .. what do they do/specialise in ?

Answer 1

Yes, the mind, but they concentrate on finding the root causes of mental and emotional distress, and trying to help behavioral issues that prevent a person from leading a relatively 'normal' life. Usually the treatments, or 'counseling sessions' are used in combination with medication that may or may not help depending on the person, and the issues they are having trouble coping with alone, or even with well meaning but often misguided advice from friends and family. A therapist is one bound by confidentiality, so a person can talk to him/her without fear of anyone's opinion. That alone, someone without any kind of agenda to talk your problems out with can be an enormous help.

Answer 2

I'm sorry, but the answers already given go only 'some way' towards the explanation of what Psychotherapist are and what they do.

There is no One Definitive Answer as to what they do as they are each different and each experience (of the clients) is different.

At the base of it all is 'there is a space / place which is yours for a regularly set time and for a stand length of time to do what you want to do and say what you want to say in safety.'

The therapist will provide this climate for you and attempt to have you explore and then focus on what is going on for you in your world, and perhaps 'Why' you experience what it is you do, and what it is about it that cause you difficulties.

During the sessions, s/he will try to help you identify areas where you might want to change, and help you find ways to achieve these changes.

With all of that said, each therapist is 'different,' and I liken it to handwriting; the training maybe the same (just as you learn to write at school), but the 'style' of writing / working emerges as a Personal Style at the other end of the training. And, also there are different 'schools of thought' as to 'methods' of working - different models ....somewhat like the different schools / styles etc of martial arts.

I some ways, there are parallels there too ...as in Judo, for example, when attacked you use the force of the attacker against him by letting his momentum do it for you - you step aside and avoid the attack ...whilst sticking out a foot and tripping him up.

In therapy you can, for example, use the energy of the client as they talk - picking out of what has been said a some thing which is perhaps revealing, and confront the client with it.

If s/he has been 'guarded' in what they have said previously, then that is like the 'tripping up' I mentioned.


It's really not easy to explain - and I have to say that I find the whole subject and process endlessly fascinating.

Contrary to what some think and have suggested, it is not the role of a 'tharapist' to become a crutch or a surrogate Mum or Dad or ...anything else. Of course, this might well happen in the mind of the Client, but the therapist has to be aware of it as a possibility and to help the client to see their roles for what they are, and for the client to find ways to stand on their own two feet.

Finally. A Psychotherapist with any worth, is all the time in training of one sort or another. this continual training only really cease when s/he retires. And this is for the safety of their Self, and for that of the client too.

I hope this goes some way to help you.
Regards.
Sash.

Answer 3

These Therapists are very highly trained to take you to a situation in life and make you actually re-live it,then they have to re-build the Patient up.
Its called facing your demons and is quite often used for victims of severe abuse as well as other cases.
They can also be used in the assessment of the Criminally insane to get to the root of whats wrong in their minds,they once again have to go very deep.

Answer 4

The workings of the mind.

They have therapy sessions with people who talk about things that are bothering them.

Some of them specialialize with certain age groups (children, adults) or particular issues or group of issues (drug/domestic abuse, marriage counseling, etc) that needs to be talked about.

They work with the person to uncover the reasons for the problem they are having and they talk about resolutions they can explore. They talk about how that went after the person tried it.

Answer 5

the mind