Essay Sample on Group Therapy: Exploring Interpersonal Relationships in Group Contexts

Introduction

Group therapy refers to the type of psychotherapy, where therapists treat groups of people or patients together. In other words, group therapy is any form of therapy delivered to clients in a group. Group therapy may include interpersonal therapy or behavioral therapy; however, it is often applied to the psychodynamic groups whereby the group process and group contexts are unambiguously applied as a contrivance of change through the development, exploration, and examination of interpersonal relationships between the members of the groups. There are many organizations that offer group therapies in the counseling process to assist patients suffering from different health and psychological conditions. Southern California Counseling Center (SCCC) is one of the organizations that offer counseling programs in various forms. The organization believes that mental healthcare is the rights of an individual and not a privilege. In the organization, every individual or a person who needs counseling should have it. Specifically, the organization has a belief in providing affordable and assessable counseling programs to everyone. SCCC has a developed, highly structured, and specific group therapy programs that aimed at assisting different people. SCCC applies different approaches to manage group therapies. While managing group therapies, the organization stipulates that it is essential to avoid controlling behaviors or being overly assertive in group therapy sessions.

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The organization often ensure that threatening, violent, or other intimidating behaviors are kept out of the group settings or group sessions. In most cases, many people, especially those suffering from low self-esteem, often remain silent or shut down when confronted with antagonizing approaches, a situation that may render the therapeutic groups useless. Through the groups, SCCC organization is able to impact the lives of the different personalities involved in these groups.

While working with groups, the Southern California Counseling Center ensures that there is respect for the participant's privacy. Specifically, there is no private or personal information owed to the group or anyone. The participants in the group therapy sessions are not always expected to reveal any piece of information at any given time. The organization applies the above approaches to directly or indirectly counter different factors that are required in resolving a wide range of common psychological challenges that people with different disorders often find themselves facing in different situations (Harper & Cole, 2012). In the organization, it is up to the group leader to effectively protect group members or participants from various forms of infringement. In most cases, the general direction and tone of the group therapies in SCCC vary depending on the type of group. There are different types of groups exhibiting different areas of focus, but they generally fall into two main categories, process-Oriented therapies, and Psychoeducational therapy.

In Psychoeducational therapies, the groups are expected to provide the members with the relevant information that they require in addressing or coping up with different situations that brought them to the group (Zipfel et al., 2014). In most cases, the groups are formulated or structured with specific modules or topics to cover. There are process-Oriented groups that are more forecast on the expertise and sharing of different information in an attempt to make connections. In the above therapeutic group, the discussions among the members are dominance rather than the set of agenda. Within the above groups, there are self-groups, medication groups, interpersonal therapy groups, psychodrama groups, and encounter groups. In these subgroups, members are engaged in the sharing of different information and feelings.

While conducting research on the Southern California Counseling Center, I discovered that the theoretical approach that they are applying at the center is psychodynamic. Within the organization, the psychodynamic approaches include theories that perceive human functioning depending on the interactions of the drivers of forces within an individual, specifically the unconscious as well as between different personalities and structures. The psychodynamic theory, in most cases, is a strong determinist as it tend to view the behaviors as caused completely by unconscious factors that we have no control over. In the therapeutic groups, the unconscious feelings and thoughts can transfer to the cognizant mind in terms of parapraxes, which is mostly known as Freudian slipsor slips of the tongue. In these groups, through interactions, individuals tend to reveal whatever is in their minds through interacting and saying things that they do not actually mean to say. In psychodynamic theory, Freud believed that slips of the tongue lead to the unconscious mind and that there is no accident involved. In other words, every human behavior is significant in the group setting (Burlingame, McClendon, & Alonso, 2011). In many cases, psychodynamic therapy refers to the psychological interpretation of emotional and mental processes. The psychodynamic therapy is based on or rooted in the traditional psychoanalysis, in other words, it is drawn from the object relations, self-psychology, and ego psychology. Initially, the concept was developed as a less-lengthy and a simpler alternative to the psychoanalysis. Psychodynamic therapy often aims at addressing the formation and foundation of the psychological processes. As a result, it aims at reducing symptoms and also improve each individual life.

In Southern California Counseling Center, while applying psychodynamic therapy to the counseling groups, therapist assists people or members of the groups in gaining insight into the present-day problems as well as the insight into their lives. Similarly, therapist in the above center also evaluate patterns of behaviors that people develop in a given duration. To achieve the above procedure, therapists usually review specific life factors with an individual in therapy. Some of the factors that are usually under review include thoughts, emotions, beliefs, and early-life experiences (Burlingame, McClendon, & Alonso, 2011). In psychodynamic therapy, recognizing the recurring patterns can assist people on how they can develop the defense mechanism to cope or avoid distress. The above insight can enable people changing patterns. According to psychodynamic theory, the therapeutic relationship is central. In other words, it can demonstrate how an individual interacts with their loved ones and friends. Additionally, transference in the process of therapy can indicate how early-life relationships impact an individual today. In the process of psychodynamic therapy, transference is often evidenced, and it involved transferring an individual's feeling for a parent, for instance, onto the therapist (Burlingame, McClendon, & Alonso, 2011). The above intimate look at the interpersonal relationship can assist people in understanding their part in the relationship patterns. In other words, it may empower them to transform the above dynamic.

Treatment Plan For Healing From Betrayal

The treatment plan is a thorough plan designed for an individual patient or a group of patients. A treatment plan is a powerful tool for engaging different individuals in therapeutic processes. In SCCC, the treatment or therapeutic plans for the groups often follow the simple formats which typically include high priority treatment goals, developing space for tracking progress, measuring objectives, diagnosis of the present mental health problems, and ensuring the collection of patient's individual information, demographics, and psychological history. Going by the above information, the group treatment plan will be based on the healing from betrayal, and it will follow the psychodynamic theory approach.

Group Treatment Plan

Healing From Betrayal

Definitions Healing from betrayal involves the psychodynamic approaches whereby emotional healing occurs when the brain replaces or overcome the painful images or memories of damage. The emotional healing involves acquiring or adopting the restorative images; in other words, the images which motivate behaviors that promote safety, well-being, and growth. In the end, healing from betrayal restores the normal functioning of the mind. Healing from betrayal may occur naturally for some people; however, it may take longer time.

Hyperactivity (muscle tension, trouble relating with other people, loneliness, having trouble falling asleep, exhibiting continues state of irritability). (Barkley, 2014).

Cautiousness (inability to relate with people freely, restrained or tentative, too many worries)

Hypervigilance, in most cases, many people healing from betrayal suffer from hypervigilance, a situation that needs to be considered in the healing processes or treatment plan. Hypervigilance involves experiencing the concentration difficulties, constantly feeling on the edge, insomnia or having difficulty falling or staying asleep as well as exhibiting the general state of irritability.

Goals

The goal of the treatment plan is to reduce the overall intensity, frequency, as well as the duration of healing from the betrayal. The above objectives will be conducted in groups where there will be group leaders as well as the experts involved in the counseling process.

Another objective is to ensure that group members learn and implement the coping skills that result from the betrayal and worries that come with it and in addition, improve everyday functioning.

The treatment process also involves empowering the group members and enhancing the self-worth through encouraging communication and socialization among the people. The reduction of depressions that comes with betrayal is usually considered in the healing processes.

Objectives

Describing the thoughts, situations, feelings as well as different actions that comes with worries and anxieties. The treatment process will involve the impacts of functioning and attempts to resolve negative feelings that come with healing from betrayal.

Interventions

In the treatment plan, the group leaders need to focus on developing the levels of trust with the group members or with the client; the interventions should ensure the provision of empathy and support in an attempt to motivate the group members to feel safe while expressing their symptoms.

Ask members of the group or the clients to describe their experiences of healing the betrayal as well as their impacts on the functioning of an individual psychological being. In addition, there is the need to assess the excessiveness, focus as well as the controllability of the worries as well as the frequency, type, intensity, and the duration of the healing process.

Verbalize the understanding of the physiological, cognitive, and behavioral components of healing from betrayal and the treatment process.

Discussion on how the generalized healing processes from betrayal typically involves unnecessary worries on the unrealistic threats, different body expressions of tensions. Psychoeducation and overarousal. In addition, there is the consideration of avoidance of the threatening issues that that usually interact to maintain the problem.

Discussion of how the treatment target creates worries, anxiety, and symptoms, as well as the avoidance to assist the client in controlling or managing worries effectively. In the treatment plan, there is a reduction of overarousal as well as the elimination of unnecessary avoidance.

Encouraging the group members to read and understand the psychoeducational sections of books and the treatment manuals on the generalized anxiety and worries.

Impact and implement the...