Psychotherapy & Holistic Medicine

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3. * Don’t be Late! * Everyone is late sometimes in unavoidable situations, but if you are habitually late then you have a time management problem. Expect your therapist to address this issue with you. * Considerate others in the waiting room. * Do not chat or use your mobile phone in reception. This can be disturbing to other patients. Often patients waiting for an appointment will be under significant stress, and asking them questions can further add to this. * Read the "Information to Clients“ * A significant amount of work is invested in creating these helpful documents and they provide important information that the therapist does not want to have to repeat. Take some time to read through it so as to avoid unnecessary questions. *

4. * Complete paperwork in a precise manner. * Paperwork is not supplied just to take up your time and should be completed in detail. The information requested is vital to providing correct treatment and any mistakes or omissions can cause problems or delays. * Know why you are here. * Take some time to really consider what the reasons are behind your desire for treatment. A patient with misunderstood or vague intentions will risk losing out on the best possible treatment for themselves. * If unsure, speak your mind. * There are no stupid questions or statements. Don’t be afraid to be honest and share exactly how you are feeling. What may seem trivial to you could be a key factor in a therapists diagnosis. *

5. * Ask for clarification if you don’t understand something. * Again, there are no stupid questions. There are many aspects of treatment, billing or confidentiality that can be confusing. If you are unsure, just ask. * Do your homework * It is important to take your therapists advice to heart. If they ask you to read a book or practice a technique, it is vitally important that you do so. Just like taking prescribed medication, if you skip it, it won’t work. * Sessions can be uncomfortable. * For therapy to work, you may be asked at times to discuss things which you don’t feel entirely comfortable with. However, it is in these times when the best progress can be made. Mentally prepare yourself before a session to face these challenges, and understand that a therapist's office a safe space where you can be open with judgement. *

6. * Only call your therapist in an emergency. * It’s important to respect a therapists privacy and not bother them out of hours. Understand that your therapist may be busy with other patients and calling them could interrupt somebody else's treatment. Think before you call outside of a session, and do so only if you believe you may harm yourself. * Make sure to cancel appointments if sick * So long as you cancel with 24 hours notice you won’t cause significant trouble to a therapists schedule. However, within 24 hours you should only cancel unless genuinely sick with something that may infect others. In these cases, a therapist with usually waive any late cancellation fees. However, try not to make this a habit. *

7. * Interpersonal Therapy (IPT) * IPT is used to treat a variety of clinical conditions but is, in essence, a brief treatment specifically developed and tested for depression. The emotional state of an individual is examined from the point of view of how it’s been affected by interpersonal events. Any problematic relationships the patient may be experiencing are addressed by reframing difficulties in interpersonal terms. * Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) * Cognitive Behavior Therapy is generally used for the treatment of children, but in some cases adolescents too. It aims to improve mood, anxiety and behaviour through examining patterns of thinking. CBT specifically looks for distorted or confused elements in a patient's thought patterns. * Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) * Mature adolescents who have chronic suicidal thoughts or engage in behaviours such as self-harm can often be prescribed Dialectical Behaviour Therapy. It has also been found effective in the treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder. * Psychodynamic Psychotherapy * Psychodynamic Psychotherapy is a form of therapy that puts emphasis on understanding issues that may influence or motivate behaviour and thoughts in a child. It is used as a method of identification for typical behaviour patterns, defences and responses relating to internal struggles or conflicts. *

8. * Family Therapy * Family therapy sessions encompass a variety of family-related situations and can include a child or adolescent along with parents, siblings, and even grandparents. As the name suggests, family therapy focuses on helping families operate in more constructive and positive ways. It achieves this by exploring communication patterns and providing support and education. * Couples Therapy * Couples therapy is a branch of family therapy focused specifically on the communication and interactions of two or more adults in a relationship. It can involve couples who have children or not but does not involve the child or children in the therapy. Typically, couples therapy deals with marital problems. * Play Therapy * This form of therapy is almost exclusively used in the treatment of young children, however, it is also applied in cases of adults with growth and developmental difficulties. The treatment endeavours to assist a child’s ability to verbalize and identify feelings using elements such as toys, puppets, dolls, building blocks, games and drawings. Through observation, the psychotherapist identifies themes or patterns to understand the child's problems. *

9. * Psychoanalytic Therapy * Psychoanalysis was made popular by Sigmund Freud towards the end of the 19th century when he began treating patients with talk therapy. Common techniques he developed and used included dream interpretation, free association and transference analysis. The techniques involve probing a patient's unconscious thoughts and past experiences to elicit feelings and memories that could be affecting behaviour. * Behavioural Therapy * In the early 20th century behavioural therapy began to become a popular school of thought. Various types of conditioning, social learning and similar methods started to play an important role in psychotherapy. Behaviourism has since become less popular but many of its techniques are still used today to help patients alter undesired behaviour. *

10. * Humanistic Therapy * Humanistic therapy gathered popularity in the mid 20th century as an alternative form of psychotherapy which focused on showing an unconditional positive attitude towards the patient. Carl Rogers was known to practice a method of this he called client-centred therapy. Aspects of this method are still widely used today and focus on helping patients maximize their potential. Personality attributes such as free will, self- exploration and actualization are developed with this approach. * Cognitive Therapy * During the 1960’s, psychoanalysts began to focus more on how behaviour and functioning are influenced by human thought processes. The idea of cognitive therapy revolves around the concept that our mental well-being is heavily influenced by our thoughts. It presents the notion that if one has a pessimistic or negative outlook on life, then they too will have a negative overall experience of life. Cognitive therapy aims to identify the delusions that cause these thoughts and instill more positive and realistic thoughts in their place. * Cognitive-behavioural Therapy * Cognitive-behavioural therapy, or CBT, attempts to assist patients in understanding thoughts or feelings that affect their behaviour. Disorders such as phobias, addiction, anxiety and depression all benefit from cognitive-behavioural therapy. The method involves modifying undesired behaviours and ending cycles of abuse by changing the negative thoughts caused by distress related to these behaviours. *

11. * A doctor of holistic medicine will look for the cause of a condition and aim to cure the problem at the root. The doctor will work with the patient and together, as a team, they will attempt to reach a solution. Various elements of a patient's life that a holistic doctor may look into include stress, diet, sleep habits, spirituality and emotional stability. * When researching a condition such as back pain, a holistic doctor may try one or more of these treatments: * massage for muscular tension * a relaxation program to alleviate stress. * if the patient spends long hours working at a desk, he may suggest a different chair * referral to a physiotherapist if prior back injury exists * referral to a psychologist if the problem is deemed to be related to anxiety or depression * Holistic medicine sees a person as being made up of four main parts - physical, psychological, social and spiritual. To truly understand a person's well-being, each part must be properly investigated and then treated as one whole system. *

12. * Healing through Love * Holistic medical practitioners treat the patient with kindness, acceptance, and love without condition. It is vitally important for the patient to be aware of and understand the power of love in the healing process. * Whole Body Treatment * Holistic doctors look at the body, mind and spirit all together as important for life. All four aspects must be examined when any treatment is performed in order to give a balanced diagnosis. * Prevention and Treatment. * Rather than only managing symptoms, holistic doctors promote a healthy lifestyle and the prevention of sickness. They aim to raise awareness of the disease and relieve symptoms through optimizing overall well-being. * Natural Healing Power * Holistic medicine promotes the self-healing power of our bodies, minds and spirits. It assists patients in using these powers to progress healing. * Combined Healing Systems. * Holistic medicine teaches safe and effective options for diagnosis and treatment. These derive from a variety of traditional methods and are chosen to best treat the unique needs of each individual. The scope of these aspects includes lifestyle changes as well as conventional drugs and surgery. *

13. * Relationship Care * Patient autonomy is encouraged through the doctor-patient relationship and puts emphasis on the needs of both parties. The quality of the relationship is paramount to the healing process. * Individuality * Holistic practitioners concentrate patient care on the individual needs of the person with the disease, rather than focusing on the disease itself. * Teaching by Example * Incorporating the principles of holistic health into treatment and daily conversation with the patient helps to promote healing. * Learning Opportunities. * Holistic healthcare professionals aim to use the occurrence of illness and suffering as an opportunity to grow and learn, for both the doctor and patient. *

14. * Homoeopathy, rather than being another term for holistic medicine, is, in fact, a specific type of holistic medicine. Homoeopathy makes up a small part of the entire holistic group of treatments and isn’t necessarily practised by all holistic doctors. * Homoeopathy is a natural healing method intended to restore and improve general health. It is considered a very safe, gentle treatment and is made from environmentally friendly sources. * Homoeopathy is based on the principle of treating ‘like with like’ - in other words, using the cause of an ailment to treat the ailment. * Holistic medicine and homoeopathy are often used interchangeably, but they are in fact two distinct medical terms with significant differences. * Holistic medicine is a catch-all term used to describe a number of therapies, all of which are centred around the idea of treating a patient “as a whole. * The holistic approach tends to focus less on simply treating symptoms, and instead attempts to find the root cause of an issue. *

15. For more details, please visit: http://www.hhccentre.com/faqs/