Back in Spring last year we published three blogs relating to therapeutic models: what to do if CBT doesn’t work; the importance of a strong therapeutic relationship and how to find the therapeutic model that works for you. Here at Morency, we often receive emails and phone calls from clients who have tried CBT (Cognitive Behaviour Therapy) elsewhere and found that it did not impact upon their difficulties. Such clients are often wondering about integrative psychotherapy and want to explore this with us further.
In our previous blogs we spoke about the reasons why CBT isn’t effective for everyone: it’s short; it doesn’t always prioritise building a therapeutic alliance and it can focus on quick solutions that don’t always address the underlying causes of the problem. Our other blogs spoke about the association between strong therapeutic relationships and good outcomes for clients; and how to select the right therapeutic model for you.
An alternative to CBT is integrative psychotherapy. This is an individualised therapeutic approach which puts the client at the centre of the work. The main differences between CBT and integrative psychotherapy are:
- Integrative psychotherapy attempts to explore the underlying causes of mental distress; including anxiety, low mood and trauma. The therapist will support the client to make new links between their distress, their behaviours and their previous experiences which are likely to account for the current distress.
- Therapists using an integrative approach will integrate aspects from different therapeutic models which they believe will suit each particular client. This means that therapy will look different for each client, even if they are working with the same therapist.
Integrative psychotherapy is not usually time-limited. The client and therapist will decide together when ending therapy or taking a break feels appropriate.- Integrative psychotherapy can have a greater focus on emotions, compared to CBT which tends to focus on cognitions (thoughts) and behaviours.
- Integrative psychotherapy places a lot of importance on building a strong relationship between therapist and client. Research has found that the strength of the therapeutic relationship has a significant impact on how and if the client reaches their therapeutic goals.
- If appropriate, integrative psychotherapy will consider the impact that wider family or social difficulties are having on a client’s distress.
- The client is encouraged to set the agenda, their own goals and the pace and content of their sessions in integrative psychotherapy.
- Although there are other factors to consider, such as whether the timing of therapy feels right and whether a strong therapeutic relationship can be built between client and therapist, the individualised nature of integrative psychotherapy means that it is an approach that could work for anyone.
Overall, integrative psychotherapy may be an approach that suits you if you have found that CBT has not been effective at addressing your difficulties. Part of the integrative psychotherapy approach is to ensure that the therapy works for you and with you. Therefore, if you would like to discuss the possibility of integrative psychotherapy sessions at Morency, please contact call Dr Julie Hannan now on 07530 854530.