Group Therapy Without The In-Patient Stay: New Counseling Options That Work

When you really need more in-depth counseling, it is hard to find without signing yourself into a hospital long-term. Since most people just want a support group to rely on and more counseling than their therapists are able to give or work into a therapist's typical schedule, more options are necessary. Thankfully, there are options available to you to help you work towards healing and focus more on recovering from mental health issues and emotional and psychological traumas.

NAMI (National Association for Mental Health)

This organization has smaller branches in almost every major city in the country. The groups meet regularly, often in coffee shops, libraries, or anywhere else they can book a private and quiet meeting place. There may be specific groups of the same local chapter meeting on different nights (e.g., drug recovery, depression and anxiety, PTSD, etc.), so be sure to check with your local NAMI chapter before attending a meeting for the first time. There may or may not be a trained therapist in the group/leading the group-- it just depends on who is involved in the local chapter meetings.

Domestic Abuse Shelters

Not only do domestic abuse shelters provide battered women and their children a safe haven, they also conduct group counseling sessions so that everyone can heal and learn from each other. Childcare is always provided and always free, so that the children are safe while moms (and some rare dads) can attend. These sessions are often lead by a trained therapist or psychologist, but a trained advocate or experienced and "healed" survivor may also lead the groups in a pinch.

Clinic--Sponsored Group Therapy Classes

Many medical and clinical groups are now hosting, offering and holding "how to heal your life" classes. These classes meet once or twice a week with a therapist and a group of people who may be suffering from the same traumatic or problematic histories as you are. All of you work together with the therapist to learn what caused you or led you to your current situation, how to address the past and move ahead with your future. The classes also look at individual ways for you to avoid repeating any past behaviors that could lead you to more emotional and psychological hurt. 

Lots of Other Support Groups

Although support groups are an excellent resource for whatever ails you, they are not always led by professionals. Still, if you cannot find one of the previously-mentioned groups, a support group for drug addicts, alcoholics, overeaters, overachievers, underachievers, and/or people with eating disorders can also be very useful to you. Many of the reasons that led people to these groups and to their patterns of behavior are some of the same ones you might have encountered yourself. Just talking and sharing with a group can really help.

About Me

parental counseling to create a positive relationship

Growing up, I thought that our family was typical, but as I grew to be an adult and had a family of my own, I questioned a few of the things that my family had done growing up. As I struggled with my toddlers, I questioned my mother's version of correction. How do you get through to a toddler that what he or she is doing just isn't appropriate behavior? Where do you draw the line? Parental counseling helped me find my own style of parenting and taught me a lot of effective methods for correcting young children and creating a relationship that I am proud of.

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