Group Therapy- Benefits, Types and Activities
Group therapy is a form of therapy that involves one or more therapists working with several people at the same time. A circle created to pour your hearts out without any judgement, is group therapy. People sitting in a circle and talking about their problems without the fear of judgement? Yes, that is a close idea about group therapy.
Benefits of Group Therapy
Group therapy provides a social atmosphere similar to real life
It is cost-effective hence making it accessible to people with low income
It inculcates a sense of relief in the individual by assuring them of the fact that they aren’t alone.
Participants get to learn from everyone’s individual experiences.
Group Therapy decreases the feeling of loneliness and isolation
TYPES OF GROUP THERAPY
Groups can vary according to specific types of problems.
Some of them being:
Self-help group Therapy
Guiding others when you have overcome the problem is the motive of this therapy. Benefiting others from your experience and helping them overcome. Some examples of self-help groups can be self-help groups for alcohol dependence or self-help groups for parents with handicapped children.
Substance Abuse Group Therapy
A therapy for the addict people to overcome that addiction. In these therapy groups, recovering addicts gather to encourage one another and work through recovery programs and channels Some attendants are sometimes yet to get clean while others have been sober for years. Some groups include 12-step programs and sponsors to aid in recovery.
Group Therapy for Grief
When a loved one dies, the event can leave people feeling lost and alone. Helping each other in a group in those hard times. For example, a session may specifically help parents who lost children or surviving spouses.
Counseling Group Therapy
These groups focus on interpersonal strategies to help people resolve the usual, yet often difficult, problems of life. The primary task in the group is accomplished by the participants supporting and challenging each other in self-exploration. The group leader acts as a facilitator more than a mentor, leading the group through a series of developmental stages. Some examples of counselling groups are groups for those coping with divorce or groups for those navigating the transition to retirement.
Psychoeducational Group Therapy
This group therapy focuses on developing group members’ thinking, feeling, and behaviour through a structured learning format within and across group sessions. People that attend psychoeducational group therapy are often high-functioning but have information lacking in a certain area, such as parenting skills or assertiveness. The group leader is a bit like a teacher in addition to a facilitator as he or she provides factual information, leads discussions and helps group members incorporate the information into their lives through skill-building exercises. In addition to parenting skills groups and assertiveness training, other examples of psychoeducational groups are stress management groups and caregiver training
Some Activities that can be done during Group Therapy:
Friendship Mural
This is an activity where friendship acts as an aid. Here children draw pictures, celebrating different cultures and leaving a message.
Treasure Map
On a piece of paper, label one corner, “The beginning” and another corner, “Success.” Draw a windy path between the two points. Using collage materials, create stations along the path with creative titles, such as “Crossing the desert of loneliness”, “Climbing the mountain of determination,”etc.
Inner Child
Imagine yourself as a child and give everything that you need. Give your child the right care, understanding, supporting and nurturing parent.
4.. My Perfect Life
Take a paper and pen down the dream which you want to accomplish. That dream home, job, relationship and achievement. Turn your paper over and write three steps that will help you accomplish this.
Suicide prevention
If you think someone is at immediate risk of self-harm or hurting another person: