Why choose group therapy?
We all face difficulties in life! When problems become overwhelming and ways to change our experience seem elusive, many people decide it is time to find some professional help through therapy. While individual therapy is widely known about, most people are less familiar with what group therapy offers and how it works.
Writing in 1963, S.H. Foulkes, the founder of group psychotherapy in the UK, pointed out something that seems equally true today:
“The relative isolation and alienation of the individual is [..] a very real problem of our time … Group psychotherapy simply brings back the problems to where they belong. The community is represented in the treatment room … “
If part of what makes life difficult for us is the loss of meaningful contact with people, then joining a therapy group can offer a valuable opportunity to find ways of feeling more connected with ourselves and with others.
In this shared safe space, we soon discover that other group members are also dealing with similar difficulties. We can experiment with different ways of interacting with each other and start to express ourselves more fully. We find that we can help them, just as they can help us.
We learn and discover together and, in doing so, we find our place in the group and then in our own communities of family, friends, colleagues and so on.
The group in practice
For some information about what happens in a therapy group, what to expect, and typical issues people bring to the group, see here:
Some theory
For some background information on the group analytic theory underpinning this group and a contrast with other approaches to group work, see here:
Who is the group therapist?
Alex Dixon provides this therapy group as part of his private practice, having established the group in 2019.
Alex is a Group Analyst, registered with the UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP), who has completed a full professional training at the Institute of Group Analysis. He is also a registered Integrative Psychotherapist for individual psychotherapy.
Since 2010, Alex has facilitated different kinds of groups in a variety of settings.
Working for counselling services in the charity sector, he has facilitated a long-term support group for people with mental and physical health problems; he has also facilitated a medium-term counselling group for people with emotional difficulties.
In the NHS, he set up and ran a psychotherapy group for outpatients over a four year period.
Since 2017 he has provided experiential training groups for trainee counsellors and psychotherapists in psychotherapy training schools.
Joining this group
To find out more about how to join this therapy group, click here:
Enquiries
If you are interested in joining this therapy group, or you want to find out more about how it may be relevant to you, please get in touch here:
We can start with an informal chat if you wish to find out more about what to expect or how it works.