What Is Group Therapy?
Group Therapy is a form of psychotherapy that involves one or more therapists working with several people at the same time who have gone through similar mental health struggles. During these meetings, a professional therapist helps the client tackle specific or general problems such as a particular mental illness or a source of life stress. Group members usually meet 1 – 2 times a week for roughly an hour and a half to two hour and hours and typically have anywhere from around 5 to 15 people in them.
4 Benefits of Group Therapy
Many people who attend group therapy find it highly therapeutic and helpful to develop common bonds through the group process. Group therapy offers a safe space to share with others who understand the similar issues of what they’re going through. Below we explore four benefits of group therapy and how its highly effective therapeutic process can help those struggling on their mental health journey.
- Learn from others with similar struggles – Group sessions can help open your eyes and help you learn about yourself and understand other people’s struggles. Since you all tend to have gone through similar experiences, this can help you see things you may not have been able to do otherwise. The opportunity to receive open, direct, and non-judgmental feedback is pivotal to group therapy. The feedback members give and receive is done with insight and identification with the shared experience which makes the experience very powerful.
- Find your voice– Finding your voice can be very difficult, and group therapy offers a safe place to help you find it. This safe space allows you to use your voice in an unfiltered manner without the stress and anxiety you normally experience. Knowing how to effectively articulate how you feel can help build your confidence and empower you to truly believe that you deserve to be heard and that your feelings are valid. Additionally, hearing what others experience and how they describe their circumstances can finally give you the words to go along with the emotions you know all too well.
- Promote social skills– Group therapy helps you learn how to navigate relationships and situations with others. If withdrawing is your comfort zone, group therapy can be very helpful to break the cycle and become more confident in social interactions. Receiving loving feedback about your social interactions can help you identify the struggles you experience in other real-life situations.
- Help you grow– Growth is rewarding, and group therapy can help you achieve it. By having this group of support, you have more people to help you stay on top of your mental health goals and continue your growth. Group work is about identifying, not comparing. It is the identification of experiences and emotions that allow those in the group process to grow internally.
Explore Our Upcoming Group Therapy Sessions
At Illinois Healing Center for Trauma and Addiction, we offer various group therapy sessions for those suffering from trauma and or addiction. Our upcoming sessions include:
- Early Recovery Group
- Continued Recovery Group
- Betrayal Trauma Group
Visit our website https://www.ilhealingcenter.com/services/group-therapy/ to learn more about these upcoming group therapy sessions and contact our office with any questions. We hope to see you there!
