After having recently listened to this Invisibilia Podcast titled Entanglement, I thought it would be a good idea to share my thoughts on
where the major schools of thought on psychotherapy have been and perhaps where
the field may be headed...
A portion of this Podcast neatly outlines the three major
schools of thought on thinking and feeling, the first being Freud's theory of
the unconscious. In part, this theory posits that most, if not all, of our
thoughts and feelings in life stem from our childhood experiences. The
predominant change occurs when we can get in touch with the origin of these
thoughts and feelings and begin to understand that the circumstances that may
have governed their formation way back when, may no longer apply to our daily
lives.
The second major school of thought on therapeutic change is
Albert Beck's theory of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, which states that our
behaviors and emotions are very much connected to our thoughts. The theory
posits that if we are able to notice, change and/or retrain our thinking
patterns, our feelings and actions will follow suit.
The third major school of thought on therapeutic change is
generally referred to as Mindfulness Based Approaches, and is currently
receiving a lot of attention and research. Such practices focus on teaching
individuals to become aware of all thoughts and feelings that may come up and
help us learn to accepting them without judgment, hence letting go of ensuing
reactions and assumptions.
All three schools of thought mentioned above are widely
viewed as helping bring about therapeutic change in different ways. The first
school of thought focuses on understanding where the uncomfortable thoughts and
feelings come from, in hopes that this insight will update the unconscious
thoughts and feelings and make them conscious, thus making them amenable to
change. The second and third schools of thought on therapeutic change focus
instead on deauthorizing the power of thoughts. Namely that by actively
changing thinking patterns, or by accepting our thoughts and suspending
judgment, our cognitions will have less power to affect our feelings and
behaviors.
In my experience, there is no one correct way to enact
therapeutic change, but instead there is a combination of techniques and
methods that can be used in order to help each individual achieve long-lasting
change. This I believe, is largely based on where (with thoughts, behaviors,
acceptance practices or feelings) the individual feels more comfortable
starting their therapy. I do, however, feel strongly that feelings are more
basic than thoughts (feelings are preverbal, thoughts are contingent on
language), and hence when thoroughly understood and updated, can lead more
directly to a more holistic and sustainable change. However, meditation and
mindfulness practices as well as retraining one's thoughts and behaviors are
wonderful ways to appease certain symptoms and contribute to greater comfort in
achieving the insight and understanding that will lead to a come comprehensive
paradigm shift.
If you would like to learn more about modern psychotherapy
concepts please visit this blog of my dear friend and colleague, Dr. Richard
Kestenbaum.
