Psychotherapy vs Counselling: What's the Difference?
If you have been feeling stressed, anxious, or depressed, you are not alone. In fact, studies show that approximately 80% of people in the UAE suffer from some type of mental illness such as stress, anxiety or depression.
Reaching out for help takes a high level of vulnerability and courage. Thankfully, the stigma around mental health is changing, leading more people to seek the help they need.
The only problem is, what type of help do you need? There are many forms of therapy, and knowing the difference between psychotherapy vs counselling, for example, will help you get the right help that you need.
Both are considered to be interchangeable, however, there is quite a distinction between them.
Thankfully, we have the answers for you. Keep on reading to learn the difference between psychotherapy vs counselling, so you can start working with the right therapist and improve your quality of life.
What is Counselling?
If you have specific problems or behaviours that you are trying to find the solutions for, that is exactly what counselling specializes in.
Using talk therapy, the counsellor will help you to find answers to specific problems or emotions such as anger, shame, resentment, grief, jealousy, addictions, depression, anxiety, etc.
A counsellor is trained to give you advice based on the situations that you are describing and will refer you to a psychologist or doctor when necessary.
Certain situations where you would seek a counsellor would be:
You have addiction issues
You want to learn how to cope with relationship issues
You want to learn the tools to handle depression or anxiety
You feel stuck in your life and want to make some changes
You feel your issues are short term and need a re-boot.
It is important to remember that counselling is not the same as consulting. Your counsellor will not give you their own answers, they will ask the appropriate questions for you to discover your own answers, leaving you to feel more empowered.
What is Psychotherapy?
Psychotherapy has been around since the early 1800s and was invented by Josef Breuer, not Sigmund Freud as many people believe.
works with the belief that we have experiences in our past that cause us to feel the way we do today. Psychotherapists' main goals are to reveal the deeper rooted causes of specific issues such as depression.
They will ask appropriate questions to help you discover what events in your past are affecting your mental health today.
They will also help you to release blocked and stored emotions from these events that you may not have known how to let go of in the past.
What Are the Main Differences of Psychotherapy vs Counselling?
While both forms of therapy are considered to help you deal with similar issues such as depression, they have quite different approaches.
Counselling works with the present moment and more of the conscious mind and reprogramming your beliefs.
Psychotherapy works with your past experiences and how they affected your subconscious mind, mental programming, or in other words, your "auto-pilot".
Get the Help You Need Today
There you have it! The key differences between psychotherapy vs counselling are their approaches to your problems.
It all comes down to whether you believe that your current problems are caused by subconscious programming or a present issue that you need the tools to work on.
To learn more, feel free to contact us at any time to get the help that you deserve!
