Stressful situations are a completely ordinary and familiar phenomenon for a person. At work, bosses put pressure on them, loading them with tons of tasks or forcing them to work overtime. At school, something is not given, the "deadlines" of term papers and essays are running out. Disagreements or misunderstandings may arise in the family, the husband / wife or parents begin to sort things out, which invariably leads to conflict.
All these loads and clashes loosen the human nervous system, resulting in the emergence of various complexes, psychological problems and pathologies. To prevent their development or to correct already acquired deviations from the norm, there are many types of psychological assistance.
What is this help?
Any outside intervention in the human psyche is aimed at stabilizing his state of mind, at correcting possible behavioral disorders, or at identifying and subsequently eradicating personal problems.
Psychological help can be provided at home or professionallevel, it all depends on the severity of the problem. If these are troubles at work or, for example, a quarrel with friends, then even a simple layman who is not a specialist in psychology can help his neighbor simply by listening to him, showing sympathy and understanding. For a long time this function in the Middle Ages and in modern times, before psychology was formed as a science, was performed by priests. The principle of confession allowed parishioners to make a psycho-emotional relief, stabilizing their state of mind, providing some kind of socio-psychological assistance.
In some cases, mere verbal support and sympathy is not enough. When a person is mentally ill, when a deformation and splitting of his personality has occurred, when he is no longer able to think adequately, psychiatry comes to the rescue, combining counseling and drug therapy.
Variety of psychological help
Depending on the tactics used during treatment and the severity of the situation, different types of psychological assistance are distinguished. One type can be applied to a patient to remove their speech and internal barriers, thereby helping them reach their full potential.
Another type is aimed at restoring the emotional balance of the patient, which was disturbed, for example, due to nervous exhaustion. For various problem states and situations, the principle of individual meetings or group trainings can be used.
Why do you needhelp?
Most often people turn to psychologists when something in their life stops going according to plan, when relationships with loved ones deteriorate, when there are problems with work. There are many reasons, but they all lead to one thing - to a violation of mental balance.
If the picture of the patient's problem is not clinical, then ordinary counseling is enough to achieve the result. A positive result in this case is overcoming difficulties in communication, removing internal clamps that prevent you from engaging in fruitful work.
Improvement in the patient's condition is usually observed when he begins to understand that he will be carefully listened to and understood, and will also be able to help, relieve mental anxiety. Even then the person is relieved. However, one session is rarely enough, on average, counseling takes from 2 to 15 sessions, which should be carried out by a specialist with a psychologist qualification.
Diagnosis of the patient's condition
Before determining the methods by which the treatment will be carried out, the specialist needs to understand what the depth of the problem is and, in general, whether it actually takes place. Back in the late 19th century, Wilhelm Wundt first attempted to determine the state of mental functions by measuring the level of perception, reaction speed, and so on.
In the 1920s, the famous Swiss psychologist Hermann Rorschach went further in the diagnosis of mental disorders, developing a special system of spots, later named after him. These "blots" are stillare used by specialists in the provision of many types of psychological assistance, as they are an effective way to determine the personality characteristics of a particular patient.
For diagnosis, various tests and questionnaires are often used, which are taken by the patient under the supervision of a doctor, but without his direct participation. It is also impossible to know the full picture of the disease without ordinary conversations and observations. Often they provide the most valuable information, but it can be collected within a few months.
Psychological counseling
In most cases, without suffering from serious mental disorders, people still turn to psychologists for help, feeling inner discomfort. Psychological counseling as a type of psychological assistance primarily sets itself more important tasks than just listening to the patient and the concomitant assent.
The main goal is to show a person in what course he can lead his life, to realize and, possibly, rethink his intentions, attitude to life, shade his purpose and the meaning for which he lives. In this case, it is impossible to help with medicines, so the psychologist must be not only a specialist in psychology, but also in philosophy, sociology.
Family Counseling
Psychological counseling can work successfully not only within the individual, but also within the whole family. When differences arise between husband and wife that they cannot resolve, thenpsychology helps them. Counseling couples consists of 3 stages.
At the first session, the specialist gets acquainted with the content of the problem, collects general information, and chooses the most preferred type of psychological assistance to the family. At the next stage, he listens to the opinion about the problem and how to solve it from both spouses, testing and solving projective tasks. The third stage is the most important and long, it can take several weeks depending on the depth of the problem. At this time, the psychologist tries to solve the problem using different approaches that require the participation of both spouses. His goal at this stage is to show the couple how important it is to hear each other and accept the point of view of a loved one.
Psychotherapy. What's the point?
Psychotherapy is a systematized impact on the human psyche in order to eliminate his internal problems associated with his attitude to society and to himself. The term "psychotherapy" was coined by the English physician Daniel Tuke back in the 19th century and denoted the influence of the soul on the body after exposure to the doctor.
Now there is no clear definition of this term, however, the task and means of this type of psychological assistance are clear: it is to improve the patient's quality of life by establishing deep and trusting relationships for the further application of treatment methods, including medication. There is also clinical psychotherapy, which focuses on biological changes in the body and their impact on the human psyche.
Behavioral and Cognitive Therapy
One of the most popular branches of psychotherapy is behavioral, or, in other words, behavioral therapy. The purpose of this technique is to change deviant behavior to the level of the norm, as well as to develop new individual behaviors that are useful in everyday life and professional activities.
Behavioral therapy does an excellent job of releasing fears and phobias, so it can be considered as a form of psychological help for children. In the case of adult patients, a very positive result from therapy is observed even with severe and prolonged dependence: drug, alcohol.
Cognitive therapy differs from behavioral therapy primarily in that it does not focus too much on the patient's behavior. Special attention is paid to his thoughts and feelings in order to direct them in such a direction in which a person can think more realistically. This type of psychological assistance has been successfully used to treat patients with depression or clinical perfectionism. The direction of their thoughts ("I have no future" or "it's all or nothing") changes in a more positive and realistic direction.
General conclusion
The psyche is the most important and at the same time the most fragile complex of mental processes, without which human existence is impossible. Severe stress and anxiety due to problems in relationships with loved ones, friends, or an influx of difficulties at work can shake thiscomplex.
If this happens, there is no shame in seeking help from a specialist. Modern psychology and psychiatry offer a huge range of psychological approaches to the treatment of patients, from simple soothing conversations to a complete change in the course of life in a positive direction. What type of psychological help is suitable, only a professional psychologist can decide, but you need to be sure that there are no hopeless situations.
