The Gestalt, Behavioral, Cognitive Behavior And Reality Therapy

For this assignment, I will examine how cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) is effective approach for clients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Post-traumatic stress disorder is defined as "a mental health condition that is triggered by exposure to actual or threatened death, serious injury or sexual violation," (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). It is natural to feel afraid during and after a distressing experience and most people can recover after the initial symptoms. But, people with PTSD continue to feel stressed and frightened after the experience is over.

The participant is a 49 year old African American male who began using substances at the age of 13. He was diagnosed with severe alcohol, cocaine, and opioid use. The participant has been incarcerated over the past 32 years. He was recently paroled after completing eight years of a sixteen year sentence in the Illinois Department of Corrections for burglary and theft. The participant is on medications to treat HIV/AIDS and has been diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder. He was referred to Healthcare Alternative Systems residential program through TASC as a condition of his probation.

From the time of the advent of Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic theory and therapy until now, psychologists have searched for new and better ways to both understand and treat the human psyche. Many psychologists have spent their lives analyzing the complexities of human thought, behavior, and interactions with societal influences in order to find new ways to guide humans towards a more fulfilling human experience. Throughout time, various theories and models of therapy have emerged, each with their strengths and weaknesses in their efforts to help humanity live more fulfilling lives. Psychoanalytic, Adlerian, existential, person-centered, gestalt, behavior, cognitive, cognitive behavior (CBT), reality, feminist, postmodern, and family systems approaches have all made important contributions towards the evolution of psychological theory and therapy. One of the most widely accepted and practiced forms of theory and therapy in today’s world of psychology is CBT. Cognitive-Behavior Therapy has a rich and storied history, contains more inherent strengths than weaknesses, and provides effective treatment for a variety of psychological conditions.

Among these therapeutic approaches are the psychodynamic approach and the existential approach. An example of existential approach psychotherapy is the person-centred therapy that was introduced by Carl Rogers in the 1940s. Person-centred therapy (PCT) focuses on the quality of the person-to-person therapeutic relationship; it places faith and gives responsibility to the client in dealing with problems and concerns (Corey, 2009, p. 30). On the other hand, for the psychodynamic approach, Sigmund Freud, the core founder of this approach developed psychoanalysis. Psychoanalysis is a therapy aimed to treat mental disorder. It is a set of techniques for treating the unconscious causes of mental disorders; as well as to explain the underlying factors of how human personality and abnormality develop from childhood (Corey, 2009, p. 30). This paper examines the similarities and differences between psychoanalytic therapy and

A study was conducted by Monson et al. (2006) to assess the effects of (CPT) Cognitive Processing Therapy on military veterans who were suffering from PTSD. The study included sixty participants with prolonged combat-related PTSD who partook in a wait-listed controlled experiment of a CPT treatment. More than sixteen percent of the participants dropped out of the study from the original ninety-three participants who were authorized to receive treatment. Out of the sixty participants that remained the group was equally split into two groups of thirty clients (Wait Group vs. Immediate Group). The Wait Group waited for a period of ten weeks before receiving the CPT treatment, whereas the immediate group received treatment immediately. The treatment was provided twice a week and consisted of twelve CPT sessions. The results revealed overall that there were significant improvements in PTSD and comorbid symptoms in the Immediate Group in comparison to the Wait Group. The study not only revealed the importance of immediacy in treating veterans with PTSD but supports the use of cognitive–behavioral treatments in this population as well (Monson et al.,

In this paper I researched veterans learning to cope with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder PTSD. The Diagnostic and

To conclude, Kristen Walter neither confirmed nor denied if one treatment program was better than the other. She stated that both outpatient and residential programs can be beneficial to veterans with PTSD, but the treatment program that works best may depend on the severity of their symptoms. In the article “Cognitive Processing Therapy for Veterans with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Comparison Between Outpatient and Residential Treatment”, Kristen Walter evaluates the treatment success in outpatient and inpatient programs for veterans with

This annotated bibliography looked at 6 different journal articles on the effectiveness of Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) in treating Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) versus other methods and variations of CBT. Historically speaking, it is common knowledge in the field of psychology for CBT to have a 50% success rate for patients with PTSD in that it either works or it doesn’t work, which is traceable to the patients commitment to the therapy. These articles review abstract ideas that have been ventured upon by researchers to corroborate the preconceived notions of CBT and PTSD and find a

PTSD or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder is an increasing problem in our country. PTSD has its roots in the military, but the entire populace is subject to its effects. I served my country for the past 21 years and have seen the before and after of the effects of combat, so any discussions about PTSD, diagnosis, treatments, and cures is likely to catch my eye. In this paper, we will discuss the basics on PTSD, current rates in society, and list the possible cures and or treatments that are currently in use. The prevalence in society should show that all people should be familiar with the signs and systems, as well as knowing some of the basic treatments to assist afflicted individuals. The goal of this paper is to provide just that for the reader.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder or PTSD has been one of the most critical issues for military veterans for decades. Most veterans who deployed have seen or experienced traumatic stressful events which can eventually develop to PTSD. They might not recognize the symptoms of the PTSD. They might not know how to react to the situation and how it can affect them in the long run. Since some of them may not know the symptoms of PTSD; therefore, they might not even know that they have PTSD. On the other hand, those who do know, might keep it to himself or herself secretly and never let anyone know about it. Later on, these symptoms start to get worse and worse and it, finally, is too late to treat these veterans. There are several treatments out there for PTSD. Therapists can use the cognitive psychology to help veterans with PTSD by using cognitive therapy. Cognitive Processing Therapy is one of many therapies that can be used to help veterans to overcome PTSD. Cognitive psychology is a new version of functionalism which was influenced by Gestalt psychology and structuralism and he main perspectives of cognitive psychology focus on the importance of cognitive process or intellectual process, for example, opinion, memory, thinking, and language (Lahey, 2012). Cognitive Therapy can treat PTSD by helping veterans to understand its symptoms, change the way of thinking, and better cope with PTSD.

The following provides a brief overview and critique of the intervention video. The video provides a visual of a therapeutic session using cognitive processing therapy (CPT) with a veteran diagnosed with post-traumatic disorder (PTSD). There is significant evidence that distinguishes CPT as an effective intervention model for PTSD.

However, in this experiment they randomly assigned half the patients to the VRET condition and the other half to the PE group. The VRET condition was expanded to include psychoeducation, attention training, emotional processing of trauma, and cognitive restructuring alongside exposure. The treatment as usual condition included a combination of PE, cognitive processing therapy, and eye movement desensitization and reprocessing. The apparatus and virtual simulations used were similar to the first experiment. The study was conducted in a naval hospital within the United States. Approximately one to two sessions per week were performed for ten weeks in both conditions. Outcome measure included clinician assisted PTSD scale (CAPS). Of the 10 patients in the treatment as usual condition, 1 dropped out. Out of 10 patients in the VRET condition, 7 showed a 30% or greater improvement in CAPS score. In comparison, only 1 of 9 patients in the treatment as usual condition showed 30% or greater improvement in CAPS score. Altogether, there was no significant difference in CAPS score between the VRET condition and the treatment as usual condition.

CBT is based on the premise that our thinking and beliefs about ourselves, others, our world, and the future has a crucial influence on how we feel. Also, when a person is feeling low in mood they have a sharper recall of memories which are negative in origin. The reciprocity between negative thoughts negative emotions and negative behaviors create a vicious cycle. CBT is problem orientated, active and directive and helps clients by posing specific questions to critically evaluate the source of their distress. Behavioral experiments are set as homework to reality test the validity of client’s irrational beliefs. The two areas usually associated with PTSD are intrusive thoughts/imagery and avoidance of situations which trigger the reaction to previous traumas. CBT for PTSD is designed to desensitize the person to the traumatic event. The cognitive-behavioral model assumes that a person is both the producer and product of her environment; therefore, treatment is aimed at changing a person’s behaviors within her environment. The client recognized her need for counseling after her masked feelings began to come out. Client realized that she needed to get better for her son. Client understood that she didn’t know how to get better on her own. Deeper examination of feelings revealed that client was haunted and traumatized by repressed memories and unresolved feelings from still living in her environment constantly getting

Psychology explores human behavior and the human mental process figuring ways to improve the thinking and attitude of an individual’s existence. Sometimes, different techniques are used and tried to properly resolve the problem within the multitude of possible behavioral issues. Moreover, Sigmund Freud, an Austrian neurologist, developed many theories, psychodynamic therapy, for clinically treating people with mental health problems through their unconscious mind; Then, Sigmund Freud’s theories or therapy, rather, diverged into other types of therapies such as Biological Psychology or Cognitive Psychology. No doubt, there are various perspectives, both strong and weak, in the field of Psychology using different techniques on different

that we are born with five basic human needs that drive us all our lives: survival, love and