What's the Name of this Therapeutic Model, and What Alternatives Exist?

April 25, 2021 9:47 AM

Asking for a name of a mental health philosophy/method from any Mefite therapists, LCSWs, psychiatrists or psychologists – and what alternatives exist to it.

The modality: "the [best / only] cure for relationship trauma is a healing therapeutic relationship". What is this called?

Not for me. 20 years later and I know I can develop trust for a therapist with it changing absolutely nothing for me outside of that therapeutic relationship. I will shortly have to shop for a new therapist, as my current one has moved during quarantine – so does this concept have a descriptive or technical name to it, to refer to and/or avoid?

Alternatively, a mini-history: severe peer abuse in childhood + college; "gifted child" during school; severe parentification during long periods of family economic instability; current late-in-life virgin; several so-called 'friends' who I trusted but ended up being true bastards; inability to self-calm (me + whole family) leading to food as my addiction, leading to morbid obesity. Can fake a social self very well.

Things like CPTSD and HSP seem very descriptive, and since adolescence I've had sort of a IFS/Inside Out kind of thing in my head (not DID). I'm very brain-oriented especially since I absolutely detest and hate my body.

Based on this, any suggestions of philosophies/modalities that might actually have an effect on all this crap, when shopping for a new therapist?

posted by anonymous to Science & Nature (9 answers total)

I’m an LCSW. Generally, we talk about how trauma occurs in relationship, and so a key element of therapeutic treatment for trauma is the therapeutic relationship—i.e., you can’t do effective trauma therapy if the therapeutic relationship isn’t there. It’s not the relationship itself that heals trauma, but it’s a foundational component. It’s more like sterile surgical tools than a specific surgical technique. Some things to ask prospective therapists might be: how do you track a client’s progress in therapy? what do you do when a client isn’t experiencing relief from symptoms as you or they had hoped? do you have experience with people who have a similar trauma history to mine? what techniques or interventions do you use, and can you explain roughly how they work?
posted by theotherdurassister at 10:14 AM on April 25, 2021 [2 favorites]

Many kinds of psychodynamic and interpersonal therapies have the perspective that the therapeutic relationship is a microcosm of a person's other relationships, and therefore is a kind of laboratory where new experiences can be created that will cause healing in other non-therapy relationships. And listening to you talk about the concerns that bring you to therapy, I'm not surprised therapists recommend these types of therapies to you. It's not about trusting the therapist, it's about assuming you'll re-enact whatever relationship problems show up for you in therapy, where the therapist can help you understand what's happening for other people and then you can practice and learn to respond differently. If you "fake a social self" in therapy as in other relationships, this kind of approach (and, for that matter, many other approaches) might not be able to effectively get to the heart of the matter.

You might try a therapist that specializes in body image and eating disorders, or possibly (there isn't much research on it, so I hesitate to mention it, but it does seem to fit at least in theory with some of your concerns) somatic experiencing. I don't think the standard PTSD treatments (i.e., CPT, PE, etc.) would make a lot of sense for you based on what you've described here, but you could certainly ask a therapist about them, since they're not focused on the therapy relationship particularly.
posted by shadygrove at 10:58 AM on April 25, 2021 [1 favorite]

The concept name you are looking for is “corrective emotional experience”.
posted by alygator at 11:08 AM on April 25, 2021

From my wife, who's working on her LMHC certification:

"I agree with anything that has to do with incorporating somatic or body into the therapy. Trauma manifests itself in the body and dysregulates it, which is what that person describes. If you wanted to mention the book The Body Keeps the Score, it’s a seminal book on trauma.

EmDR is also very well respected these days and that is a mind-body therapy as well."
posted by emelenjr at 11:16 AM on April 25, 2021 [1 favorite]

Have you seen this recent thread?
posted by lloquat at 4:34 PM on April 25, 2021

Try the keyword "attachment" or "attachment-based approaches". But I don't think you necessarily want to avoid that. For therapists who take that approach, the therapeutic relationship mirrors other relationships and can be a vehicle through which to explore a client's attachment style/trauma. I don't think the idea is that a good therapeutic relationship magically heals all attachment trauma.

(I'm a therapist)
posted by bearette at 5:14 PM on April 25, 2021

PS- studies indicate that the greatest predictor of therapeutic "success" is the therapeutic relationship, not the modality or theory used. Most therapists are eclectic in nature in terms of methods anyway and clients may prefer different methods or theoretical orientations based on their personalities or preferences.

You can look into specific and unique methods of treating trauma such as EMDR which is very effective for some people and incorporated with talk therapy usually
posted by bearette at 5:17 PM on April 25, 2021

I don't have an answer to your question but after reading this i can say that we're a lot alike, so feel free to me-mail to just like, talk about it
posted by FirstMateKate at 10:04 AM on April 26, 2021

This may not be an option where you are, but a friend dealing with really deep shit has recently had intense breakthroughs with ketamine-assisted therapy. In her sessions, the deep shift in relationship to her body and her brain, followed by integrating conversation with the therapist, has made space for her to make some radical changes in the way she sees and *feels* about herself in the world.
posted by rrrrrrrrrt at 10:51 PM on April 26, 2021 [1 favorite]