Integrative therapy is a combined approach to psychotherapy with the chunks of other specific therapies involved. It is based on the view that no single therapy can address a client’s issue in all situations. Rather, each individual must be considered unique and a whole whose issues must be tailored to their needs and specific personal circumstances.

It also refers to the infusion of an individual’s needs and personality, integrating the behavioural, cognitive, affective, and physiological systems within that individual, while addressing the social aspects as well. Integrative therapists don’t focus on fitting the client into therapy, instead, they focus on tailoring therapy for each client.

How to find an Integrative Therapist

If you are looking to find the perfect Integrative Therapist it is crucial to make sure that they have the appropriate qualifications, knowledge and experience. At Expat Therapy 4U we only accept therapists who have full professional proficiency in English and are highly experienced in working with people from culturally diverse backgrounds. The clinicians we approve share our values and commitment to provide high quality therapy to the expatriate community in the private sector across Europe and online worldwide. We strongly believe that therapy changes lives, and being accredited ensures all our therapists are qualified to a high standard. You can find an Integrated Therapist who is insured to practice and accredited with a recognised membership body online here.

How does Integrative Therapy work?

In this therapy, the therapist uses his/her therapeutic experience to cater to the best approach to meet the needs of the client, by using specific techniques and using different approaches. The therapists use different concepts and approaches to reach the stage where they could develop an integrative theory according to the need of the client.

• Integration of approaches

Here, the basic idaea is that human psychology can be explored in various ways and perspectives. Same way, the issues that an individual faces can be best addressed when different concepts and theories are integrated according to the situation.

Many systems can be merged in order to form a perspective, such as:

• Humanistic therapies
• Cognitive and behavioural therapies
• Psychodynamic and psychoanalytic therapies

Now, each approach proposes different insight and explanation to human behaviour, and proposes different factors that can be responsible for the key changes in behaviour and cognition. These approaches can be used under one roof if we pick up the desired element form each.

For instance, when working with a client with behavioural issues, the therapist will look into adjusting the behaviour first and reducing the negative symptoms. This might involve using cognitive behavioural techniques to help the client get hold of their functioning before proceeding further towards gaining some insight.

Now, the therapist might use psychoanalytic techniques that will help in dream analysis, childhood experiences to sort out the reasons that might be behind those behaviours. This way the problem can be addressed in a complete manner through the collaboration of different therapies.

• The client-therapist relationship

An active and expert integrative therapist is a necessary element of successful integrative therapy. In almost every case, the therapist must be unbiased, non-judgemental, interpersonal, and filled with the intent of establishing a strong relationship with their client. They must also have this quality of listening and understanding to the depths without being judgemental.

There needs to be meaningful relationships and contract among both to empower clients so that they can explore their own behaviours and reasons while collaborating with the therapist. Both the therapist and the client work together in understanding what issues are to be addressed and what are to be understood further. An integrative therapist is actually committing him/herself towards the wellness of the client through using various techniques merged in one place.

What can Integrative Therapy help with?

Integrative therapy can help with a lot of issues from general to specific. Here are some of the most common issues being dealt with the help of integrative therapy:

• Trauma
• Bereavement
• Low self-esteem
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Autism
• Learning difficulties
• Phobias
• Addictions

How is Integrative Therapy different from other therapies?

Integrative therapy is a mixture of some specific talking therapies that are designed to cater to the needs of the clients as per their issues. Where other therapies are focused on a fixed school of thoughts and procedures, integrative therapy is open to many new things. Here is how integrative therapy is different and unique from other therapies:

• There is no fixed model of working (the models are designed by each therapist according to the issue faced by the client)
• The therapy is designed to fit into the needs of the clients, not vice versa. Where other therapies with a fixed school of thoughts are made for specific issues, integrative therapy is designed according to the client.
• It is very flexible. According to the changes happening, it can be changed in the mid-process.
• It is less structured and not rigid at all like many other therapies.

Integrative therapy doesn’t mean that the therapist can pick anything they want on their way to work according to their training. They are taught well-structured and technical ways of combining different approaches and putting them together in one place. Although there are some possibilities of flexibility, but still it doesn’t mean that it is experimental.

What are some of the benefits of Integrative Therapy?

For clients and therapists, integrative therapy is a whole new experience and it comes with many benefits. Here is how integrative therapy is beneficial in many ways:

• After being indulged in this therapy, the client can better understand the challenges he/she has been facing in life.
• The clients are made to realise what events are making them trigger the unhelpful behaviours and they are supported to alter those behaviours while understanding the triggering factors.
• The clients will better understand the limitations they have put on themselves and how they can get past those limitations.
• The client will be able to integrate all the aspects of personality that are playing their role at the moment such as emotions, body, spirituality, social skills, etc.)
• The client, with the help of the therapist can easily set the goals towards a healthier and better life.
• The client will be able to see the matters of life in more available, open, and non-judgmental ways.

Like all other therapies, integrative therapy requires the client and the therapist to be open to exploring the fears and the aspects that are working as hurdles towards a healthy life. If you like therapy which is less rigid and more about catering to your needs, integrative therapy is the one.

Find a Integrative Therapist through the Expat Therapy 4U platform

Integrative therapy holds the idaea that human psychology can be understood and explored in various ways, but no single theory carries the answer to every situation. All theories have different approaches and values with the foundations that can contradict each other and thus we need to integrate them.

Further Readings on Integrative Therapy

https://theinternationalpsychologyclinic.com/services/integrative-therapy-in-london/