(504) 571-9910

kristinturner@nolapeaceofmind.com

Approaches to Treatment

EMDR - Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing

Experiencing or witnessing a frightening, dangerous, or violent event can overwhelm our body's natural coping abilities. Exposure to death, injury, abuse, or sexual violence often causes trauma. Other more common life events like job stress, divorce, or accidents can cause a trauma response as well. People respond to trauma in many different ways.

Psychodynamic Therapy

also known as Insight-Oriented Therapy, focuses on unconscious processes as they appear in a person's present behavior. This type of therapy seeks to increase a person’s self-awareness and understanding the influence of the past on present behavior, also known as transference. This approach helps people examine and unpack unresolved conflicts and symptoms that arise from past dysfunctional relationships and that manifest themselves in the need and desire to continue unwanted and/or irrational behaviors.

Positive Psychology

A little over twenty years ago there was a significant shift in how psychology viewed the human condition, from what was “wrong” with someone, to what was “right”.

Keyes and Haidt (2004), presented four of the objectives of Positive Psychology:

1. Rise to life's challenges; make the most of setbacks and adversity
2. Engage and relate to other people
3. Find fulfillment in creativity and productivity
4. Look beyond oneself and help others to find lasting meaning, satisfaction, and wisdom

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

or CBT, is a structured, short-term and present-focused intervention which seeks to solve current problems by helping people learn to recognize and correct erroneous thinking, or cognitive distortions, which lead to unwanted behaviors.  Cognitive distortions are identified, challenged and then replaced with more reality-based thoughts, and these new thoughts can aid in achieving desired behaviors.  CBT also includes learning coping strategies which can be helpful with managing emotions and stressful situations.

The cognitive structure through which we feel, think and relate to the world, is called a schema.  Our schema is like a tape running in the background of our mind and affects how we interpret and react to our life and the world around us.  These “tapes”, or beliefs, are formed through life experiences beginning in childhood; some are positive and help us adapt, while others are unhelpful and maladaptive.  Beliefs and the underlying negative thought patterns are identified, which helps to determine how we feel about them and how this affects behavior.

Supportive Psychotherapy

Supportive psychotherapy is a more practical approach, offering a safe place for someone to express themselves, while also helping with managing emotions through life’s challenges.   The primary tenants of Supportive therapy include comforting, advising, encouraging, reassuring and active and empathic listening.

Psychoeducation

We, as humans, are multifaceted.  Being educated about the intricate workings of the mind, and its connection to the body, can aid the therapeutic process.   Psychoeducation is the process of providing information about the condition or behavior that a person is seeking to improve.  Gaining an understanding of how brain chemistry is different for some people with various mental health conditions, can aid in accepting and coping with it.  Psychoeducation is often used in combination with other approaches to therapy.



721 Hillary Suite 4
New Orleans, LA 70118

kristinturner@nolapeaceofmind.com
(504) 571-9910

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