Gestalt Therapy for Addiction Recovery & Mental Illnesses

Oak Forest Recovery's Mission

Gestalt Therapy is a very useful tool in a therapist’s arsenal. While most substance abuse treatment programs would agree that the support of others is most beneficial in helping one to stay sober,  it is through one’s personal journey that the change really starts to occur behaviorally, cognitively, and emotionally. I have found that there are many modalities of treatment that help one to recover,  but very few stay focused on the emotional component that the Gestalt modality brings us.  It uses the “here and now” concept so that one can understand and gain an awareness of their feelings and learn how to manage them usefully.

Developed in the 1940s by Frederick “Fritz” Perls and collaborators Laura Perls and Paul Goodman as an alternative to conventional psychoanalysis, gestalt therapy has been used today to successfully treat a host of addiction disorders and mental illnesses treatment, including substance use disorder, sex addiction, compulsive gambling, eating disorders, trauma, bipolar disorder and depression.The word gestalt comes from the German word shape or form, and can be defined as “unified whole.” It makes sense, then, that gestalt therapists use this technique to enhance awareness, freedom, and self-direction.

How Does Gestalt Therapy Work?

The goal of Gestalt therapy is to increase self-awareness in the present moment. Psychologists who use Gestalt therapy believe that when a person is genuinely self-aware, they will consistently improve their physical and psychological health and make improvements to their immediate environment, which will perpetuate future health and holistic growth.

Gestalt therapy uses guided visualization exercises that promote self-awareness and personal ownership. A key concept in Gestalt therapy is that the perceptions of past events are unreliable, and these misperceptions can have disproportionate effects on perceptions about the present. By becoming aware of the negative effects that memories can have while working to develop self-regulation and effective coping skills, people are able to free themselves from constricting ties to the past and move into a stage of growth and personal betterment

The Benefits of Gestalt Therapy

Generally speaking, gestalt therapy helps promote awareness of your thoughts, emotions and perceptions, and helps you better understand how these internal dialogues play a role in actions and behaviors. When used as an integrated approach to addiction treatment, gestalt therapy can also help you:

  • Monitor thoughts and actions in “real time”
  • Discover suppressed feelings or feelings masked by other feelings
  • Accept and trust your emotions
  • Provide a greater sense of freedom, control and serenity
  • Promotes conscious and thoughtful actions
  • Gain a new sense of self as overall awareness

Finding Treatment for Addiction

If you or someone you love is struggling with a substance use disorder, help is available. The Oak Forest Recovery at Agoura Hills CA, experts can give you a more explanation about Gestalt therapy and other forms of behavioral therapy. Please contact us today at 1-888-597-6257 or submit the form below to begin your journey.

Reference:

Gestalt Therapy: Advances in Theory and Practice

[contact-form-7 id=”2392″ title=”Free Consultation”]

Can Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) Treat Addiction?

Chris-Pickett-Behavioral-Technician-oak-forest-recovery-center

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a psychotherapy approach that can be used to help treat substance use disorders. CBT is commonly used to treat depression, anxiety disorders, phobias, and other mental disorders, but it has also been shown to be valuable in treating alcoholism and drug addiction. This is especially true when it’s part of an overall program of recovery.

CBT helps people learn to better identify the negative and self-defeating thoughts and actions that can contribute to substance use. It is a short-term, focused therapeutic approach to helping drug-dependent people become abstinent.

[contact-form-7 id=”2392″ title=”Free Consultation”]

How Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) Works?

Colleen-Carroll-Behavioral-Technician-oak-forest-recovery-center

Rational emotive behavior therapy, also known as REBT, is a type of cognitive-behavioral therapy developed by psychologist Albert Ellis. REBT is focused on helping clients change irrational beliefs.

The Basic Steps of REBT

In order to better understand how REBT looks, it is important to take a closer look at the therapeutic process itself.

Identify Irrational Thought Patterns and Beliefs

The very first step in the process is to identify the underlying, irrational thoughts, feelings, and beliefs that lead to psychological distress. In many cases, these irrational beliefs are reflected as absolutes, as in “I must,” “I should,” or “I cannot.” According to Ellis, some of the most common irrational beliefs include:

  • Feeling excessively upset over other people’s mistakes or misconduct
  • Believing that you must be 100% competent and successful in everything to be valued and worthwhile
  • Believing that you will be happier if you avoid life’s difficulties or challenges
  • Feeling that you have no control over your own happiness, that your contentment and joy are dependent upon external forces

Holding such unyielding beliefs makes it almost impossible to respond to activating situations in a psychologically healthy way. Possessing such rigid expectations of ourselves and others only leads to disappointment, recrimination, regret, and anxiety. Rational emotive behavior therapy can be effective in the treatment of a range of psychological disorders, including anxiety and phobias. It can also help people manage specific behaviors, such as severe shyness and excessive approval-seeking.

[contact-form-7 id=”2392″ title=”Free Consultation”]

Overview of Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)

Kevin-Dunn-Behavioral-Technician-Oak Forest Recovery

Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) is a type of cognitive-behavioral therapy. Its main goals are to teach people how to live in the moment, develop healthy ways to cope with stress, regulate their emotions, and improve their relationships with others.

DBT can help people who have difficulty with emotional regulation or are exhibiting self-destructive behaviors (eating disorders and substance use disorders). DBT is sometimes used to treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

How It Works

DBT has evolved to become an evidence-based psychotherapy approach that is used to treat many conditions. DBT is used in three therapeutic settings.

Group settings where patients are taught behavioral skills by completing homework assignments and role-playing new ways of interacting with others.

Individual therapy with a trained professional where a patient’s learned behavioral skills are adapted to their personal life challenges.

Phone coaching in which patients can call the therapist between sessions to receive guidance on coping with a difficult situation they are currently in.

Each therapeutic setting has its own structure and goals, but the characteristics of DBT can be found in group skills training, individual psychotherapy, and phone coaching.

Acceptance and change. You’ll learn strategies to accept and tolerate your life circumstances, emotions, and yourself. You will also develop skills that can help you make positive changes in your behaviors and interactions with others.

Behavioral. You’ll learn to analyze problems or destructive behavior patterns and replace them with more healthy and effective ones.

Cognitive. You’ll focus on changing thoughts, beliefs, behaviors, and actions that are not effective or helpful.  

Collaboration. You’ll learn to communicate effectively and work together as a team (therapist, group therapist, psychiatrist).

Skill sets. You’ll learn new skills to enhance your capabilities.

Support. You’ll be encouraged to recognize your positive strengths and attributes and develop and use them.

[contact-form-7 id=”2392″ title=”Free Consultation”]