- Hello, all you big, beautiful brains out there. Today, we're going to talk about treatment modalities. 

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Before we get started, take a minute to subscribe to Psy Versus Psy. Help out your friendly neighborhood psychologist while I tell you all about treatment modalities. So treatment modalities is just a fancy way of saying the type of therapy or treatment that is right to fit a particular person or need. Determining your treatment modality usually starts with an intake process, where a person discusses what their needs and issues are with a mental health professional. 

If you are a patient or client going in for your first intake appointment, you can expect to go over all kinds of things, from what issues are impacting you the most in your daily life, to your background, to the goals that you have for treatment, and even things like your current friends and support system, to what type of insurance you have. Mental health professionals need all this information to determine what modality of treatment will work best for you. 

After that, you would work together to come up with a plan. The mental health professional can advise you on what modality of treatment would be best for your situation. Let's go over some of the different kinds of therapy modalities. 

One option is individual therapy. In individual therapy, you meet one-on-one with a counselor or therapist. Together, the therapist and patient explore unique issues, just for that patient, in a completely private setting. 

Usually, individual therapy involves goals that the therapist and their patient have agreed upon together. And those goals can be almost anything, from exploring a relationship issue, to a life trauma that they've experienced, to worries or concerns for their future. A therapist can help you set manageable goals to work through so that the patient can see progression towards resolving their issue or condition. Individual therapy can be done all on its own or in conjunction with another treatment modality, depending on the needs and situation of the patient. 

Another treatment modality that most everyone has heard of is couples therapy. Couples therapists specialize in dealing with relationship issues-- usually, romantic relationships. Typically, couples meet both together and separately with the therapist to resolve both individual issues relating to their relationship and to track the progress that they've made together. 

Along with setting goals for progress, just like what would happen in individual therapy, couples therapists also have specialized training in kind of mediation between both parties involved. For instance, if one person in a couple is having trouble listening and understanding their partner, the therapist could lead both parties through a communication exercise. It's important to note, though, that the goals set in couples therapy doesn't just have to be getting back together. Sometimes, issues might just be too big to resolve, and the best resolution can be an amicable separation. 

Closely related to couples therapy is family therapy. In family therapy, a therapist meets with an entire family about their family struggles. It could be an issue that they all share, such as the loss of a family member, or an issue from one member of the family that impacts everyone else. 

For instance, if one person in the family is struggling with depression, their lack of involvement may place their familial responsibilities unequally on the shoulders of someone else in the family. Family therapists also set goals both big and small for their patients, so that they can break down their issues into smaller, more manageable problems that the family can work through and see the progress that they've made. In couple and family therapy, the therapist is meeting to resolve issues specific to that couple or family. 

But there is another treatment modality where an entire group meets in order to resolve an issue that they all have in common. When patients meet with a therapist to resolve one central issue, it's called group therapy. A lot of the time, when people are going through a situation that might be difficult, one of the things that makes it the hardest is a feeling of loneliness or isolation. 

In group therapy, people are able to meet others who have been through those same life experiences under the care and confidentiality of a therapy setting. Often, group therapists lead their clients through activities and exercises to help them deal with their common issues. But group therapy does come with a trade-off. While it's great to know others are experiencing similar situations, not everyone is comfortable discussing what they're going through in front of others. 

For instance, you might be scared someone in the group would tell your experiences to others outside the group, or you might have an anxiety related to your condition that makes you especially afraid of sharing, or you might just be a really shy public speaker. Just because people in the group share similar experiences or situations doesn't mean that there won't be personality conflicts. Therapists have to monitor these situations carefully, because sometimes, they can lead to bigger problems. 

The big takeaway is this-- if you're having an issue and considering seeking therapy, there is definitely a treatment modality to work for your situation. If you want to know more about how psychology can help you, make sure you subscribe to Psy Versus Psy so you can get all of our other videos and you can learn all about the science of psychology. Until next time, keep thinking, and I'll see you all later. Bye. 

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