Personal Reactions, Thoughts, Feelings, Behaviors ) During The Session

Group therapy is a highly effective process that is at least as therapeutic as individualized therapy (Yalom, 2005). It is a powerful tool in psychotherapy, however the implementation of group therapy can determine how effective this process can be for the individuals participating. Some elements that are key in the implementation of a new group are the establishment of rules, norms and ethical guidelines. Included in these guidelines are the group leader’s proper training, knowledge of the subject matter, responsible duel relationships, the therapist own personal growth, confidentiality of the therapist, informing participants of the potential emotional outcome of the group, ethical use of exercises, and making appropriate referrals when needed (Jacobs, 2016).

At one point in a person life, they will participated in a group whether it is part of a specific committee, therapy, or social group. In recent years, there has been a rise in counseling within a group forum veering from the tradition individual counseling. Therapists, physiologist, and counselors believe that form of counseling is beneficial to both counselor and client. This allows the counselor to help several clients at once rather than one at a time decreasing their strenuous workload and demanding work hours. This form of counseling integrate individual that share similar issues, struggles, and experiences into one forum. This not only allows the clients to learn from the therapist but from their fellow group members. The group experience

The process of running a group therapy session is a unique time to tests a person’s skills abilities when it comes to facilitating that group. This paper will mainly look at ways when it comes to my learning's of this class that I took ways; I will also show examples and skills to run a good group therapy session. This whole paper is a reflection of the many things that I took was on being an active group counselor facilitator.

When leading the group therapy, leaders can often encounter various problems or challenges from some members. Some of the issues that might arise within the counseling process include issues of the dominator, the chronic talker, the negative members, the distracter, the resistant members and the member who strives to outsmart the leader (Corey et al., 1995).

Moreover, in my EPC 658 Seminar In Group Counseling, I had an assignment in which I had to develop and facilitate a psychoeducational group at my field site. Therefore, I had the opportunity of playing the role of a group leader. As a group leader, I had to be cognizant of the population I was working with. I was facilitating a psychoeducational group for first-generation college students at East Los Angeles College (ELAC). I was aware that this population tends to be very quiet and hesitant about speaking up about their problem or feel that what they are experiencing is normal because they have been faced with it all their lives. Therefore, one of my goals was to get students to feel comfortable in sharing and feel supported. The goal of this group was to provide support and offer a space where they

The first time I personally experienced attending a group therapy was part of my course. Through this experience i can say that group therapy can be very powerful in healing a person emotionally and since the members were from the same class, where we all have similar goals. Group therapy helped all of us to establish meaningful and intimate relationship and we also recognised commanality of members needs and problems and to develop a sense of bonding and we became very close and we could also be there for each other during emotionally trying times.It also helped me to increase self-growth, self acceptance and self –confidence among oneself and group members. Group therapy is a powerful venue for growth and change. It also helped me in expressing my emotions in a healthy way.

GWT is a course that covers the basic fundamental of group practice and direction as well as procedure and systems regularly used to facilitate group therapy discussions. This is an online course that meet on a regular basis, there has been two scheduled live sessions, one on 9/6 and 10/18, that were observed for this reflection. There are 13 participates in the group, some of which did not participate in the live meeting on the 10/18th.

5. What therapeutic communication techniques did the group leader use? Provide specific examples of the methods/approach/style the group leader used to lead this group. The first communication technique that I observed by the group leader was active listening. As each woman spoke, Lynna would face them, and non-verbally acknowledge what they were saying by nodding her head. At times, she would verbally acknowledge what they were saying by making a comment or saying, “I understand how you are feeling.” The one communication technique that she used over and over was giving hope to those women who were feeling down or were finding it difficult to refrain from drinking or doing drugs. She stated that although it is difficult, they will

18). Challenge Myths and Misconceptions- about what group is and what occurs. Convey Information- Explain Confidentiality, stages of the group developmental stages that are oriented with groups (David, 1995, p. 21). Explain procedures and obtain informed consent. Screening – using a group selection questionnaire. During the beginning phase of group therapy, issues arise around topics such as orientation, beginners’ anxiety, and the role of the leader. The purpose of the group is articulated, working conditions of the group are established, members are introduced, a positive tone is set for the group, and group work begins (David, 1995, p. 22). This phase may last from 10 minutes to a number of months. In a revolving group, this orientation will happen each time a new member joins the group (David, 1995, p.

On September 24, 2016 I had the pleasure of observing a group of individuals in an open, informal group setting sponsored through NAMI of Northern Virginia. The group was organized through Nami, and is called “Peer Recovery Group”. The group ranged in various ages from 18 through mid-50. Normally this group has a group of 6 to 12 members. The group session duration was approximately 1 1/2 to 2 hours long. The group is a peer support group for people diagnosed with mental health diagnosis such as: depression, eating disorders, anxiety, and mild schizophrenia, and cognitive impairments. The members of the group are strictly voluntary, as no group member is court ordered or mandated to attend. Group selection process is not required because the group is open and informal. The Model theory for this group focuses on small talk and surface issues. The peer support group is not considered psychotherapy or lead by a licensed professional. The facilitators in the group are volunteers and have no formal degrees or background in mental health. They are chosen by other, facilitators of Nami then trained by Nami to become group facilitators. The groups are designed to share experiences and to provide support to one another.

Summary of Article: In the article “Speaking Freely: My Experiences in Individual Psychotherapies, Group Therapies, and Growth Groups,” Rebecca Curtis discusses her experiences with multiple forms of therapy. First Curtis reviews her experiences with group therapies, then psychotherapy, followed by two psychoanalysis experiences. Curtis also discusses the value of each of her experiences as well as the difficulties she had with certain experiences.

I would enjoy seeing the progress of the member of the group or if any of the suggestions that we proposed were effective. Within these sessions, we were introduced to two new group members. They were a married couple, married for 38 years. Their daughter has been recently diagnosed with Schizoaffective disorder with acute mania. The couple seemed to be very strong, the wife seemed more reserved and the husband seemed to be more frustrated with the idea of therapy. When they entered, I was having my usual one-on-one with the facilitator. They introduced themselves and immediately began to drill the facilitator on the effectiveness and longevity of the group, you could tell that they were very educated on the process, and were very involved in their daughter’s health. The group began with update. As the regular group members began to share, the new couple began to aggressively question the group members. I immediately feel attacked and antagonized. I believe it was because they hadn’t been formally introduced to the group, and we didn’t have any way to know that their insight was coming from a safe, comforting place. I was the facilitators job to ensure that each member felt comfortable and supported and she did not follow through. I began to see the group members become frustrated with the probing of the new group members. To counteract and create a balanced environment, I began to ask them questions about the onset of the disorder on their daughter, previous life, does she feel supported, family history, current interventions. Their answers to the first couple of questions were rehearsed and guarded, but as the questions progressed their answers became more authentic. After their walls came down, the group members began to point out ways that they relate and began to give suggestions and referrals that worked well for

During my mental health and psychiatric clinical rotation, one of the tasks I had to perform was assembling a group meeting for the patients on the unit. This type of clinical was completely different than previous clinicals. In the past, clinical consisted of medical interventions such as head to toe assessments, administering medications, and helping a patient ambulate. The focus of this clinical was quite different. Interventions focused more on the patient’s mental well-being and having the ability to not only interact with patients, but make them feel comfortable enough to express all and any type of feelings. After weeks of conversing with different patients, there were a few overall recurring concerns each patient had. They felt it difficult at times to turn negative situations or thoughts into positives and in turn this contributed to elevated levels of stress. With this in mind, I decided to conduct my group around cognitive behavioral therapy, reframing thoughts, and positive affirmations. These three topics combined not only could help the patients change their negative thought processes, but they can be used as a guide to help them in the future.

Group counseling not only allows for members to learn from their therapist, it also allows for them to learn from personal experiences of other members and to gain insights and ideas on the issues they are confronting. Group counseling also helps in improving social skills among the members as they are able to interact freely in and out of the group. This way members can be more confident and open to interactions during the sessions. Group therapy influences growth and change to those involved. Also, it increases their self-awareness and enables them to gain sustenance from each other. Group counseling is also favorable to the therapist as they are able to gain faster and more efficient results for their members by counseling them simultaneously rather than one at a time. Jacobs, Mason, Harvill and Schimmel (2012) describe group counseling

Thus far in the program I have had the opportunity to experience the process of group therapy. Luckily, I have had the opportunity to run group sessions at my practicum site, so I have gained