Psychotherapy/
We like to view psychotherapy as "physiotherapy for the mind." Much the way physiotherapy can be used to address minor psychical issues like a strained rotator cuff or a major issue such as a significant back injury; psychotherapy can be used to address a host of psychological issues. These issues can range from minor challenges such as dealing with worry and feelings of unhappiness to more significant mental health issues such as debilitating anxiety attacks or severe depression. We have included the word "counselling" beside "psychotherapy" throughout our website, as it is a term that people are often more comfortable and familiar with when referring to psychological treatment.
What Is Psychotherapy/
Psychotherapy/
If you wish to learn about what to expect at an initial psychotherapy/
At Sullivan + Associates, we believe that effective psychotherapy/
Efficient
With psychotherapy/
Goal-Oriented
When clients begin psychotherapy/
Collaborative
Studies show that collaboration between the client and the clinician is critical for success in psychotherapy/
Evidence-Based
With an evidence-based approach, it increases the chance that an issue will be identified correctly and treated effectively. An evidence-based approach can also help to prevent someone who is struggling with a mental health issue from suffering unnecessarily when the problem can be treated effectively and efficiently. Another advantage of participating in evidence-based treatment is that the risk of relapse decreases notably.
In psychotherapy/
What Types of Psychotherapy/
There are many different types of psychotherapy/
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
CBT focuses on managing problems by changing how people think (cognitive) and how they act (behavioural).
The goal of CBT is to change patterns of thinking or behaving that contribute to problems or are ineffective in helping you to overcome an issue. When patterns of thinking and behaving have been improved, people feel better.
For example, if someone is experiencing anxiety attacks, the cognitive portion of therapy would help someone to challenge negative, inaccurate thoughts about their feelings of anxiety (e.g., “My anxiety will never go away,” “Anxiety is physically hurting me.”).
The behavioural aspect of treatment would focus on training the person to relax their body by using techniques such as deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, etc.
When you combine changing how you think (i.e., challenging negative and inaccurate thoughts) and changing how you act (i.e., use relaxation techniques), it helps to improve how you feel (i.e., anxiety attacks occur with less frequency and with decreased intensity).
Exposure and Response Prevention
Exposure therapy was developed to help people confront feared objects, activities or situations. Generally speaking, people are naturally inclined to avoid things they fear to reduce feelings of distress. This helps to prevent feelings of anxiety in the short-term but it serves to increase feelings of anxiety in the long-term.
Mindfulness
Mindfulness skills are a cornerstone of Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT); however, it is commonly used as a stand-alone therapy as well.
Mindfulness involves establishing a moment-by-moment awareness of our thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations and the surrounding environment. Individuals are instructed to pay attention to their thoughts and feelings without judging or believing there is a right or wrong way to think or feel. This treatment approach can be highly effective in helping people to maintain a sense of calm, even while managing difficult emotions.
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)
EMDR is a treatment that was developed to reduce the effect of distressing memories by engaging the brain’s neural adaptive information processing mechanisms. This is accomplished by following an 8-step process that instructs people to recall a distressing memory while engaged in bilateral sensory movements (e.g., side-to-side eye movements, bilateral auditory, bilateral tapping on knees, etc.). Please note: this approach is not hypnosis, and individuals remain consciously aware throughout the process.
Play Therapy
Play therapy is generally used at our clinic with children between the ages of 4 and 8 years old. With this form of treatment, children are encouraged to express their feelings through play, which is a natural self-guided process. For children, playing offers a way to express their knowledge and experiences in a fun and easy manner. In addition, the child's play materials and interactions with the clinician can help provide insight into a child's behaviour.
Common goals that can be achieved through play therapy include developing better social skills, improved emotion regulation skills, as well as processing traumatic incidents from the past.