Integrative Therapy London Guide
What is Integrative Therapy? London Guide
You are a unique person. You have your own personality style, your own history and your own way of viewing the world.
So when you’re looking at the types of therapy London offers, it’s worth checking that you’re choosing the style that suits you. There’s hundreds of different therapies, even more if you count all of the variations.
Integrative psychotherapy is a holistic therapy which draws on several therapeutic traditions, combining them into a unique package to suit your individual needs.
Integrative therapy in London
An integrative therapist firstly aims to understand the client. They’ll want to become familiar with your personality traits, your needs and your beliefs. They’ll take into account the culture you come from, your health, your age and your motivation for self development.
Your therapist might might start the sessions from a client-centered perspective. This is a strand of Humanistic therapy, emphasising an equal partnership between the client and the therapist. As a client, you’ll be able to direct the direction of the therapy. The therapist will support you as you explore, offering empathy and understanding, and giving you genuine, non judgemental feedback.
The therapy might then take on a psychodynamic flavour, as you delve into your past to see how early relationships have formed your way of thinking. You might look at dreams, and begin to explore the terrain of your unconscious, and how it effects your behaviours and relationships.
There might be other issues that come up, such as social anxiety, or an obsessive compulsion. In this case CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy) could be helpful. You’ll look at your thought patterns, and how they’re affecting your feelings and behaviours.
Integrating the personality
Integrative psychotherapists aim to integrate all aspects of the personality into a unified whole. As well as the parts of yourself you’re already aware of, there are other parts, hidden or repressed in the unconcsious.
The work of therapy involves becoming aware of these lost and disowned parts of your nature, so they can come together as part of a cohesive and harmonious personality.
During the process of counselling and psychotherapy, you’ll meet parts of you which you didn’t know existed, sometimes referred to as the shadow. These can be aspects you don’t like about yourself, as well as positive attributes which haven’t been allowed expression.
What is integrative therapy good for?
Because of its flexibility and tailored approach, integrative therapy is good for both long and short term work. It’s effective for many mental health concerns, including:
- depression
- anxiety
- trauma
- PTSD
- relationship issues
- low self esteem
The Integrative approach is fluid enough to move with you as your needs and goals change over time. You’ll be able to check in with your therapist regularly on how you both think the therapy’s progressing.
Finding an integrative therapist in London
If you’re considering integrative psychotherapy or integrative counselling, London offers a varied choice of therapists. Sometimes a therapist will have specialised in one approach before branching out into others, and sometimes their initial training will be integrative. Feel free to ask any prospective therapist what styles the’ve trained in, and the influences they draw from during sessions.
For Integrative therapy London and the UK, check that your therapist is licensed with either BACP or UKCP on their websites. Try an initial consultation, and think about whether you’d feel comfortable with your therapist over an extended period of time.
How IN Therapy London can help
If you’re experiencing anxiety, depression, or need to talk about anything that’s on your mind, don’t hesitate to get in touch to arrange an initial consultation.