Schema Therapy Near Me, How Does It Work?

What Is Schema Therapy?

According to American Psychological Association, this type of therapy is an innovative, integrated therapeutic approach, originally developed as an expansion of traditional cognitive-behavioral treatments. In comparison to cognitive–behavioral therapy, schema therapy emphasizes lifelong patterns, affective change techniques, and the therapeutic relationship, integrating all of these strategies as opposed to focusing on just one of them. [1] Looking for substance abuse treatment and schema therapy near me? get a free consultation by contacting We Level Up now.

Schema Therapy Techniques

Treatment plans in schema therapy generally encompass three basic classes of techniques: cognitive, experiential, and behavioral. Cognitive strategies expand on standard cognitive behavioral therapy techniques such as listing the pros and cons of a schema, testing the validity of a schema, or conducting a dialogue between the “schema side” and the “healthy side”.

Origins & Development

In Schema Therapy, Dr. Jeffrey Young demonstrates his unique approach to working with clients with personality disorders or those who are resistant to treatment. It was introduced in 1990 and has been developed and refined since then.

How Does Schema Therapy Work?

Schema therapy is considered an effective way of conceptualizing and treating personality disorders. Rafaeli, Bernstein, and Young (2011) and Jacob and Arntz (2013) describe some of the distinguishing features of schema therapy.

• Schema therapy places more emphasis than traditional CBT on the development of current symptoms.
• Schema therapy emphasizes the therapist-patient relationship and its potential for corrective influence.
• Schema therapy aims to help patients understand their core emotional needs and to learn ways of meeting those needs adaptively.
• Schema therapy focuses extensively on the processing of memories of aversive childhood experiences, making use of experiential techniques to change negative emotions related to such memories. [2]

What Are The Goals Of Schema Therapy?

The goal of schema therapy is to help clients meet their basic emotional needs by helping the client learn how to heal schemas by diminishing the intensity of emotional memories comprising the schema and the intensity of bodily sensations, and by changing the cognitive patterns connected to the schema.

What Are The Different Schemas?

Schema domains are five broad categories of unmet needs into which are grouped 18 early maladaptive schemas identified by Young, Klosko & Weishaar (2003) [3] :

• Disconnection/Rejection includes 5 schemas:
  1. Abandonment/Instability
  2. Mistrust/Abuse
  3. Emotional Deprivation
  4. Defectiveness/Shame
  5. Social Isolation/Alienation
• Impaired Autonomy and/or Performance includes 4 schemas:
  1. Dependence/Incompetence
  2. Vulnerability to Harm or Illness
  3. Enmeshment/Undeveloped Self
  4. Failure
• Impaired Limits includes 2 schemas:
  1. Entitlement/Grandiosity
  2. Insufficient Self-Control and/or Self-Discipline
• Other-Directedness includes 3 schemas:
  1. Subjugation
  2. Self-Sacrifice
  3. Approval-Seeking/Recognition-Seeking
• Overvigilance/Inhibition includes 4 schemas:
  1. Negativity/Pessimism
  2. Emotional Inhibition
  3. Unrelenting Standards/Hypercriticalness
  4. Punitiveness

Schema Therapy Interventions

Schema therapy is particularly well-suited for difficult, resistant clients with entrenched, chronic psychological disorders, including personality disorders (including borderline personality disorder and narcissism) and eating disorders, intractable couples problems, and criminal offenders. It has also been found to be effective for relapse prevention in depression, anxiety, and substance abuse.

Schema Therapy OCD

The National Center for Biotechnology Information reviewed the evidence regarding the effectiveness of schema therapy for anxiety disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Schema therapy is a promising treatment for anxiety, OCD, and PTSD. Yet, there is a systematic problem in the quality of research despite growing clinical interest and application. The experts, therefore, concluded with a research agenda presenting recommendations for future research that will be crucial for building a solid evidence-base for schema therapy in chronic anxiety, OCD, and PTSD.

Schema Focused Therapy For BPD

Schema therapy (ST) has been found to be effective in the treatment of borderline personality disorder (BPD). However very little is known about how the therapy is experienced by individuals with BPD including which specific elements of ST are helpful or unhelpful from their perspectives. [4]

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a pervasive, debilitating psychological condition found in 28.5% of clinical populations and between 0.8% and 1.6% among community samples. BPD is often regarded as the most lethal form of mental illness and the most severe personality disorder, where completed suicides are estimated between 8.5% and 10%. Such patients are considered high treatment utilizers as they consume extensive treatment resources, and a large proportion returns to therapy after the termination of the initial treatment. Over recent decades, specialist psychological treatments including Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT), Mentalization Based Therapy (MBT), Transference Focused Psychotherapy (TFP), and Schema Therapy (ST) have shown to be of benefit in treating BPD. [5]

Schema Focused Therapy In Addiction & Mental Health Treatment

Finding a qualified professional who has experience with schema therapy can be a challenge, but there are resources that can help. You might start by looking for therapists in your area who specialize in cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). Because schema therapy uses many of the same techniques as CBT, these therapists may also have experience with both approaches.

Someone with a dual diagnosis must treat both conditions. For the treatment to be effective, you need to stop using alcohol or drugs. Treatments may include behavioral therapies and medications. Also, support groups can give you emotional and social support. They are also a place where people can share tips about how to deal with day-to-day challenges.

A person with a dual diagnosis has both a mental disorder and an alcohol or drug problem. These conditions occur together frequently. About half of people who have a mental disorder will also have a substance use disorder at some point in their lives and vice versa. The interactions of the two conditions can worsen both. [6]

During the inpatient treatment process, dual diagnosis cases are identified and treatment begins. The next step is an intensive outpatient drug treatment program that provides drug addiction therapy by meeting at the site several times a week for intensive therapy that can help you deal with what occurs in daily life. Finally, a standard outpatient therapy program provides the continued support necessary to maintain a sober condition.

If you are looking for “schema therapy near me“? and you are also struggling with drug abuse, receive treatment for co-occurring disorders today.

As the addiction treatment community begins to realize that addiction is itself a mental disorder, the relationship between substance abuse and mental disorders becomes more complicated. The greater treatment community largely lacks a proper understanding of dually diagnosed conditions, so these conditions are still treated separately, or worse–not treated or diagnosed at all. Our dual diagnosis treatment centers in We Level Up Florida, California, Texas, and New Jersey are some of the facilities that have professionals trained to help treat co-occurring disorders concurrently. This type of tandem treatment provides some of the best success rates. 

Get dual diagnosis treatment for individuals struggling with substance and mental health. Call us today!