As the name suggests, group therapy (including family and couples therapy) is a form of treatment involving a small group of individuals, generally between 4 and 12 in number, who meet regularly to talk, interact, and discuss problems with each other. Therapy groups are typically run by one or more group therapists who keep the group organized and on track therapeutically. Therapy groups can be highly structured in nature (with specific goals set for each meeting) or flexible (group members discuss whatever is important). Groups are often set up to address particular therapy agendas. For instance, a therapy group might address men's issues, or women's issues, or focus on anger management, social anxiety, or chronic illness support. Participants are typically invited into the group based on the degree to which they fit the profile of an ideal member (e.g., having issues that the group is designed to address; being the right gender, etc.) and how likely it is that they may be able to contribute to the group as a whole.
However they are structured, most therapy groups have some basic ground rules that are usually discussed during the first session. Individuals are usually asked not to share what goes on in therapy sessions with anyone outside of the group. This rule protects the confidentiality of the other members and encourages people to be open and honest in their comments. Group members may also be encouraged to avoid seeing other members socially outside of therapy because of the harmful effect it might have on the dynamics of the group.
The emphasis on the patient-therapist relationship in individual forms of therapy is, in group therapy, replaced with an emphasis on patient's relationships with other patients. Group therapists set agendas within the therapy setting, but they are most happy when they are able to get out of the way and allow group members speak to one another directly. Patients are often more receptive to feedback they get from peers than they are to feedback they get from therapists who are often perceived as authority figures.
In a group therapy session, members are encouraged to openly and honestly discuss the issues that brought them to therapy. They try to help other group members by offering their own suggestions, insights, and empathy regarding discussed problems. A well functioning therapy group offers its members a safe and secure place where they can discuss and work out problems and emotional issues. Participants gain insight into their thoughts and behavior by listening to peers who are struggling with similar issues, by offering support and feedback to peers, and by accepting the support and feedback of other members.
Group therapy is often an ideal therapeutic environment for people who are having interpersonal difficulties, including depression (and anger and social anxiety problems, etc.), as the therapy is inherently interpersonal in nature. Affected group members usually benefit from the social interactions that are a basic part of the group therapy experience.
Group therapy provides a sense of identity and social acceptance for some participants. It can be very comforting to realize that other depressed people have similar symptoms, emotional issues, and life stressors. Learning how others cope with depressive symptoms provides new strategies or ideas that people can try in their own lives. Group interactions can also offer people unique insight into their own behavior, and provide immediate feedback about the success of new skills. For instance, many people are not aware of their negative body language (tendency to slump, look down, sit with crossed hands and feet, etc.) or style of communication unless it is pointed out to them directly. Group members may also offer one another social support by providing each other with words of encouragement and empathy. Lastly, by helping others in the group work through their problems, members can gain a personal sense of self-esteem.
As is the case with individual therapy, group therapies may draw on different psychological theories. For example, a depressed person may participate in a cognitive behavioral group that uses the meetings as a workshop for teaching cognitive restructuring and similar exercises involved in monitoring and changing thoughts and behavior. Alternatively, a group might be run more dynamically in nature and focus on interpersonal relationships, both at home and within the group itself. Sometimes, group therapy is used as a way to transition people out of individual therapy. Groups can also be a cost effective way to continue therapy after insurance benefits run out (group therapy sessions usually cost substantially less than individual therapy sessions). Group therapy is probably not helpful as a sole therapy for severely depressed individuals (unless it occurs in the context of a larger therapeutic program). However, research suggests that cognitive behavioral group therapy can be very effective for people with mild to moderate depression.
Types of Depression Group Therapy
There are many different types of depression group therapy available. You can find groups that have a specific type of depression they deal with (like bipolar or seasonal depression), groups that are gender or age specific but are not defined by the type of depression, some that deal with depression in conjunction with other problems (like child abuse or substance abuse), groups that are religiously based are also helpful because they offer spiritual solutions as well as the group therapy. You can try out various groups until you find one where you feel you fit in or that offers you the type of therapy you are looking for.
Offerings of Depression Group Therapy
Depression group therapy offers you the benefits of bonding between members of the group which creates a good support system and it is always led by a mental health care professional. People who are slow to open up may find that they feel comfortable among people who share a similar illness and it can help improve the progress of their other treatments.
Most people who take on group therapy also have individual or family based therapy in addition to any drug treatment that may be necessary. Many mental health care professionals recommend depression group therapy in conjunction with individual therapy because it helps the depressed person adjust to dealing with other people and breaks the isolation for depression. This type of therapy works for people with various levels of depression, from mild to severe. The therapy may use any of a number of therapy types which include:
• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) – focusing on the thoughts and behaviors that lead to depression and ways to change those thought and behavior patterns.
• Interpersonal Therapy (IPT) – focusing on other peoples’ roles in your depression. Your interactions with people in your life may affect the way you feel and your interpretation of those interactions can lead to depressive states.
• Psychodynamic Therapy (PDT) – focusing on trauma in your early life that may have led to the depression. This is an older form of depression talk therapy.
Suitability for Group Depression Therapy
Not everyone is a suitable candidate for depression group therapy. Group therapy is generally not advised for people in the middle of a stressful or traumatic life event. People who are suicidal, experiencing delusions, or suffering from other depression complications are not appropriate candidates for group therapy. Such people may be candidates for group therapy after receiving antidepressants or other treatment.
Some people find it too unsettling to talk about their problems in group therapy, or are too sensitive to criticism from other group members. Such people are better suited to individual types of psychotherapy. A good group, however, can have a very positive effect on depression treatment.
Also, recent studies shows gender related difference in terms of suitability for group depression therapy. For example, one of the researches suggests, that for depressed men seeking support for severe grief, group therapy may not be the best choice. A study of men and women in group therapy found that men did not benefit as much as women. “Men and women respond differently to the group therapy format,” Dr. Anthony S. Joyce of the University of Alberta in Edmonton told AMN Health.
Family and Couples Therapy
Couples therapy occurs when intimate relationship partners (married or otherwise) enter therapy together. Family therapy occurs when an entire family comes for therapy. Both of these forms of therapy tend to take a Family Systems approach to therapy. Therapists working from this approach treat the entire unit in front of them (e.g., the entire couple; the entire family) as the patient, and the individual members of these social groups are seen as components of that single patient. Though entry of couples and families into therapy may be motivated by problems that a single individual within the couple or family is having, the family systems therapist will tend to view the identified problem as a problem shared by all system members. In this way of doing therapy, a husband's depression is considered, at least in part, as a symptom of something going wrong with the relationship, and not simply something going wrong with the husband.
Sources and Additional Information:
http://www.gulfbend.org/poc/view_doc.php?type=doc&id=13029&cn=5
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/DepressionTreatment/story?id=4361100
http://www.survivingdepression.net/living/grouptherapy.html
http://patient-health-education.suite101.com/article.cfm/group_therapy_for_depression
http://www.health.am/ab/more/group_therapy_not_always_best_choice_for_men/
