What is the therapy about?
With group therapy, you will gradually gain confidence to talk openly about your problems in a supportive and empathetic environment that will ease your stress. It offers a private and confidential space where others will listen to you and you can listen to them.
The vast majority of people who have participated in group therapy confirm that it has been a positive and enriching experience. We offer reduced therapeutic groups at our Vila of Peace cabinet consisting of 6-8 people, both men and women, of similar age. The sessions take place every 15 days, and last approximately one and a half hours.
The group is led by the therapist and co-therapist who assume the role of moderators to ensure that all the items on the agenda are addressed and all objectives are met. However, discussion topics are not always proposed by the psychologist, as they sometimes arise spontaneously during the session.
The main objective is to ensure that the group is the instrument that promotes the desired change. Group therapy is so effective because people feel they are not alone with their problems anymore, as the isolation to which many had been subjected is broken. At the same time, the possibility of sharing their emotions and thoughts without fear of criticism fosters a high level of group cohesion that leads to more stable psychological changes over time. Group therapy can be very useful to treat most psychological problems, either as an isolated therapeutic issue or as a complement to individual psychotherapy, although it is more widespread in situations such as:
The person reacts more positively to feedback since the observations come directly from the group, and not from an authority figure like the one the therapist represents. It’s easier to deal with the problem, because the person finds support and understanding within the group and can even relate to some of the members. It allows the person to put his / her struggles into perspective by comparing them with the problems facing others and ultimately realising that he / she is not the only person suffering in the world. The person learns alternative, and more assertive, behavioural patterns, which are motivated by the group itself.
The psychologist analyses the person's character traitsand therapeutic goals, to assess whether group therapy may be convenient and helpful. In fact, in some cases, group therapy is only recommended after the person has undergone individual therapy and is prepared to relate to other members of the group.
However, among the most common requirements for participating in a group therapy include: Compatibility between the person's problems and the therapeutic goals of the group. Commitment to attending the sessions, and punctuality.
Confidentiality, the person must make a vow to keep what he / she hears in the sessions to himself / herself. A respectful attitude, with no room for negative criticism, sarcasm or humiliation.
Usually, the psychologist will try to balance the group with people with different problems and different degrees of social skills, but at the same time, its his / her duty to make sure that no one feels alone or excluded. Much of our daily life takes place in a group setting. In fact, our personalities are shaped and influenced by our family environment and the social groups we are linked to later in life. Many of the conflicts that we deal with also come from interpersonal relationships, so that, in one way or another, the group is always present in our lives. For this reason, it can also be used as an agent of change, a protected space that allows us to observe and analyze ourselves while we are in contact with others.
One of the advantages of group therapy is that it allows the therapist to make a deeper diagnosis, since the person recreates his or her own difficulties in the interaction with the rest of the group, exposing their behavioral patterns and cognitive process.
