INTRODUCTION to PSYCHOTHERAPY & COUNSELLING SKILLS

In this lecture we'll have a look at several definitions of psychotherapy, understand what exactly they imply, and make some conclusions about 'why we need psychotherapy in our lives'

In this lecture we'll find out when psychotherapy emerged, both from the scientific and historical perspectives. We will also learn about well-known researchers and psychologists that are considered as fathers of psychotherapy or were connected to its emergence in the past.  After this lecture you will really understand what psychotherapy is and how it started.  

In this lecture we will be looking at different definitions so that you were more clear about what we mean when we say 'therapy', 'psychology', 'counselling' or 'psychotherapy'. We will also discuss what the difference is amongst various professionals such as psychologists, counsellors, psychiatrists, and of course - psychotherapists. 

In this lecture we will discuss where psychotherapists typically work. Here you might consider other options for providing psychotherapeutic services, for example - over the telephone or 'online' over the internet! 

Throughout this course we’ve already mentioned that psychotherapists can work with different age ranges such as children, adolescents, young adults, older population and so on

We’ve also said that psychotherapy has certain aims, for example  - to help the individuals to come to some retaliations and decisions, to understand their own situation, to learn to cope with their current condition, to understand how to improve the quality of their own life, and so on. 

So let's discuss 'who' your potential clients might be!

What do we mean when we say 'short-term therapy'? Does it mean it lasts only few hours or few sessions? 

To answer this question we need to have a look at different definitions of what 'short-' and 'long-term therapy' is according to different researchers, and we'll also have a look which type is more beneficial for different cases. 

If you took any of my other courses, you might have had a lesson on therapeutic relationship already. But every time i create a course, i create a new video on this topic. I truly believe that this information is very important for anyone who wants to work as a therapist or use therapeutic approach in their work. You will see what I mean once we’ll start going through this lecture. 

So throughout the course you are already becoming familiar with the topic of psychotherapy, what it is, what it involves, what makes it different from other psychological services such as psychology, psychiatry and counselling.
Now let’s talk about what happens during the sessions too, and particularly at the first session when you’d see your client for the first time. We have mentioned that building a positive therapeutic relationship with them would be your priority. But what’s next? What else do you do during the first session? 

As we’ve been discussing throughout this course, psychotherapy can be suited to individuals of various ages and backgrounds, and that includes children. Do you think children can be treated with psychotherapy at all? Do you think there is a minimum age that is suitable for talking therapy? Let's find out here!

As we were saying earlier psychotherapy can be provided on individual basis or in groups. What are the benefits of having one-to-one session as oppose to having a group therapy for both adults and children?

Typically, most therapeutic sessions are built on one-to-one or individual approach, where the client is getting all your focus and attention. But are there any benefits to 'group therapy'? Let's discuss it here!

As we’ve been saying earlier in some cases 'family therapy' would be more effective to the chid than 'individual' or 'group' approach. Children that are referred for a family therapy could have the same difficulties than any other child the was referred to a counsellor or psychotherapist. So what makes 'family therapy' so different from any other form of psychotherapy? Let's discuss it here. 

Psychodynamic approach is one of the most widely used approaches within psychotherapy community. Why? Maybe because it is connected to historical background of psychotherapy as we were discussing earlier? Let's find out here. 

In the previous lecture on psychodynamic therapy we have mentioned the term 'unconscious process' quite a few times, so let’s have a look at it in more detail - what exactly we mean when we say ‘unconscious processes’, how we can understand and recognise them better, how we can become more aware of them and reduce them if they are unhelpful in our lives. 

In our previous lecture we’ve already started the topic of the 'unconscious mind'. 'Defence mechanisms' is a large part of it too, so let’s have a look what this really means.

'Humanistic therapy' is another approach that is widely recognised and employed by therapists around the world. What exactly does it represent? What well-known figure is connected to this approach? Let's discuss it here!

You might have heard of CBT approach by now as it’s widely used today in psychology, counselling and psychotherapy. Maybe you’ve heard that it’s great for the treatment of anxieties and possibly depression, or maybe you’ve even been treated by a CBT practitioner yourself. 

In any case, let’s have a look - what CBT is and what it represents in psychotherapy. 

In this lecture, let’s have a look at the benefits of face-to-face therapy, which means providing therapy to a client who is in the same room with you physically (not just on Skype). 

So are the benefits for the client from having their therapy session in the same room with the therapist? 

In this video, let’s continue our topic on providing therapy online as we’ve discussed during our last lecture. 

Let’s say you are thinking of offering your services over the internet from now on. This could be your full time job even, or just a part of it. What do you need to consider? 

This is just a short video where your tutor is saying farewells and thank you for taking part in this course!