Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is a common psychological treatment that has been shown to be effective in treating many mental health issues including anxiety, depression, eating disorders and substance use disorders. The core tenets of CBT are rooted in mindfulness, where one can gain leverage over their thinking and perspective by paying more attention to their thoughts. As part of this increased self-awareness, you may become aware of certain problematic or “distorted” thoughts and thinking patterns, which can lead to unproductive and unwanted behaviors.
We often hear or receive the advice to “think positively”. Whie this is sometimes useful advice, it does not adequately address the problem that most thoughts do not boil down to negative or positive. Something that helps expand that advice is to try to frame thoughts in terms of how we may be thinking in ways that are “unhelpful”, and then focus on and remind ourselves of what is “helpful”. As an example, someone may have a hard time believing “I am a good person.” In applying this CBT skill, one might identify that “I am a good person” is unhelpful thought, if they cannot believe it easily. However, if they can believe a thought such as, “I am a flawed person who tries their best”, we could classify that thought as “helpful”.
Internal Family Systems
Internal Family Systems has been studied and is shown to be effective in treating anxiety, depression, substance abuse disorders, panic disorders, and PTSD. It is also a radical shift from traditional pathological treatment models. A basic assumption of IFS is that the way we conceptualize our mind can be divided into different categories, or parts, and as we become more aware and accept these parts, we can gain more leverage over our internal system. This system by default is set to protect us, in part due to another assumption that we have all had painful experiences in our past. In an effort to protect us from future pain or trauma, “protector” parts push us to avoid people or situations, while others push us to numb our emotions though various ways, all in an attempt to not create further pain; however, these tendencies and accompanying behaviors can unintentionally create more turmoil and conflict in our lives, perpetuating unhealthy cycles.
In being more aware of these parts and finding a way to validate their desire to help and protect, we can access “self-energy”. This is the part of us that knows deep down what we need to do to heal, or to change an unhealthy way of coping. This is the part that has the wisdom to solve interpersonal problems and conflicts. This is also the part of us that promotes and encourages healing for the entire system.
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing
EMDR, or Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing is a primary treatment in helping people deal with traumatic memories. It uses eye movements, or other forms of bilateral stimulation, to help remove blocks in the healing process, in a similar manner to how removing a foreign object from our body helps it to heal properly. The rhythmic patterns of EMDR also help calm the brain and body down while reprocessing past trauma, which helps make the traumatic memory more tolerable and limits the risk of re-traumatization.
As part of the process of EMDR, I teach my clients different ways to cope, or “resources” to also help manage the difficult or strong emotions and memories that can come up while reprocessing past trauma. One in particular, is one of my favorite skills to teach: Calm Place. It includes envisioning a peaceful or relaxing place that you bring to life in your mind using your senses. As you “go” there, tapping in a rhythmic pattern on your legs or shoulders help make the experience that much sharper, and allows your body to relax as well.