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FAQ's - Frequently Asked Questions
| Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) are provided to answer the questions most often posed. If you have a question that has not been answered, please direct your question via e-mail to PRPinfo@partners.org. |
- Why should someone seek out psychotherapy?
- What is dynamic psychotherapy?
- What is the difference between psychoanalysis and psychotherapy?
- What is the difference between dynamic psychotherapy and psychodynamic psychotherapy?
- How do I find a therapist?
- Once I find a therapist, what if I do not like him/her?
- How do I become a therapist?
- Who can become a therapist?
- How long does psychotherapy take?
- How do I know when my therapy is over? Do people return to therapy after stopping?
- Can my therapist also give me medication?
- What is group therapy?
- Is group therapy better than individual psychotherapy?
- Can I do both group and individual therapy?
- How expensive is psychotherapy? Will my insurance cover it?
- What is the Psychotherapy Research Program (PRP)?
- What are the current research projects of the Psychotherapy Research Program?
- How can an interested individual become involved in the research program?
- Are volunteers needed for clinical trials?
- Who do I contact for more information on the Psychotherapy Research Program?
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Why should someone seek out psychotherapy?
People find psychotherapy to be helpful when they are feeling uncomfortable in ways that are persistent and distressing, for example, if they are depressed and/or anxious; others find they cannot seem to make intimate and lasting relationships with people or cannot work up to their capacity and want help in achieving their goals. Still others experience dangerous levels of despair, or find themselves engaging in self-destructive behaviors, with little ability to make life different.
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What is dynamic psychotherapy?
Sometimes called a "Talking Cure", dynamic psychotherapy, also referred to as psychodynamic psychotherapy is engaged in a relationship with the clinician that allows both to explore the less conscious meanings of a patient's basic assumptions, and to try out better alternatives. This therapy is often conducted once or twice a week, face-to-face, although there are variations on that frequency.
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What is the difference between psychoanalysis and psychotherapy?
Psychoanalysis is an intense treatment first developed by Freud and elaborated by many others. It resembles dynamic psychotherapy in its goals, with a special emphasis on examining the unconscious motivations and fears of the patient. Patients are often encouraged to lie on a couch, four or five times a week, and to "free associate" in order to gain access to the unconscious.
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What is the difference between dynamic psychotherapy and psychodynamic psychotherapy?
There is no difference, these terms are synonyms.
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How do I find a therapist?
There are many ways to do this; you might seek a referral from your primary care physician. You may call a department of psychiatry or psychology or social work in a teaching hospital, and /or you may call a training institute such as the Center for Psychoanalytic Studies at the MGH for a referral. The phone number for the Center for Psychoanalytic Studies is 617.724.0808.
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Once I find a therapist, what if I do not like him/her?
Feeling safe and confident in the therapist is a major factor in the success of the treatment. This is different from feeling necessarily at ease in the beginning, since the whole process of uncovering the self is painful and potentially embarrassing. If you talk about your discomfort with the therapist and feel you cannot arrive at a more productive place, you can either ask for a consultation with another independent therapist, or you can ask to be referred to someone else.
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How do I become a therapist?
Clinicians usually graduate from their professional training programs, either in psychiatry, psychology or social work, for example, and then often seek post-graduate training in dynamic psychotherapy. Such training is available in a variety of settings; one example is the Center for Psychoanalytic Studies at the MGH.
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Who can become a therapist?
People who have successfully completed their training in their professional specialities can then apply for further training as a therapist. It is advisable, and sometimes required that candidates experience their own therapy to prepare them to be more fully available for working with patients.
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How long does psychotherapy take?
The length of psychotherapy must ideally conform to the needs of the person seeking help. Sometimes brief interventions may be very helpful. In other cases, months and years of work are invested in an in-depth exploration of many aspects of the patient's personal conflicts.
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How do I know when my therapy is over? Do people return to therapy after stopping?
You and your therapist together will be regularly assessing how close you are to achieving your goals, and when that goal is more or less achieved, you can together work toward a termination. Yes, people often return for more treatment since life is unpredictable and problems arise it is natural to return to a trusted helper who knows you well.
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Can my therapist also give me medication?
Yes, directly if he/ she is a psychiatrist and that seems a useful way to proceed, or indirectly if your therapist is not an M.D., in which case he or she will refer you to a trusted colleague who will handle the biological parts of the treatment.
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What is group therapy?
Group therapy is a method of treatment in which several people with similar
dilemmas meet regularly with a trained group psychotherapist to find support, to
experience more directly their own impact with peers in the world, and who might
find a community of empathic others to be very healing.
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Is group therapy better than individual psychotherapy?
In terms of outcome, there is no measurable difference between individual and
group therapy. Group therapy is much more economical, usually costing about
one-third of the cost of an individual hour.
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Can I do both group and individual therapy?
Yes, many people find the combination very useful and efficient a way to
proceed. Your psychotherapist will help you put such a treatment in place,
either with him /herself, or in collaboration with another colleague.
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How expensive is psychotherapy? Will my insurance cover it?
Extensive psychotherapy is expensive. While some insurance will cover a few
sessions, in the main psychotherapy is purchased by the patient directly. Many
insurance companies will not cover beyond emergency and crisis care, and in turn
reserve the right to receive reports about the treatment planning and progress.
While there is some political movement toward "parity" in which mental health is treated and covered on a par with any other illness, that is not yet a robust reality.
Alternatively, some people seek treatment in a clinic; while the therapist is in training he or she is always being supervised by a senior faculty person, so the patient is receiving the benefit of both opinions and recommendations.
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What is the Psychotherapy Research Program (PRP)?
The Psychotherapy Research Program (PRP) at Massachusetts General Hospital was
formed to study empirically both the process and outcome of psychotherapy for a
range of psychiatric disorders. The PRP is staffed by psychologists and
psychiatrists in the Outpatient Department of Psychiatry at MGH. The PRP
investigates what forms of psychotherapy work best for whom under what
circumstances. A particular interest of the PRP is furthering understanding of
how psychotherapy works through intensive study of the therapeutic process. The
PRP collaborates across multiple clinical research programs in the outpatient
Psychiatry Department at MGH.
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What are the current research projects of the Psychotherapy Research Program?
Current projects within the PRP include studies of: panic disorder; dialectic behavior therapy; therapy effectiveness; and psychophysiology.
Recent papers from the PRP have focused on: psychotherapy process correlates of outcome in brief therapy of depression; the limitations of controlled clinical trials of psychotherapy; and a comparison of the process of time-limited psychodynamic psychotherapy and interpersonal therapy.
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How can an interested individual become involved in the research program?
Contact Debra Glick , Research Coordinator of the Psychotherapy Research Program at 617.643.2149 or e-mail her at PRPinfo@partners.org regarding any inquiries specific to the research activities presented on this web site.
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Are volunteers needed for clinical trials?
Yes; volunteers are needed. Contact Debra Glick , Research Coordinator of the Psychotherapy Research Program at 617.643.2149 or e-mail her at PRPinfo@partners.org.
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Who do I contact for more information on the Psychotherapy Research Program?
Contact Debra Glick , Research Coordinator of the Psychotherapy Research Program at 617.643.2149 or e-mail her at PRPinfo@partners.org regarding any inquiries specific to the research activities presented on this web site.
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