MORE PRESENCE IN RELATIONSHIPS
Help with relationships
Welcome to book a session, and we will talk through what you would like to have help with. I am a reg psychologist and meet clients online and at my practice in Stockholm, Sweden. You can get help with relational problems. I offer in-depth sessions (individual therapy) where you can gain perspective and understanding of yourself and change in your life.
About relational problems
It is common that people consider individual therapy for help with relationships (partners, children, parents, relatives, friends, in their free time or at work) or because they want to create better relationships in the future. Sometimes they would like to come to terms with previous relationships that affect their relationships in the present.
Relational problems can take many forms. Some tend to withdraw and avoid intimacy even though they do not wish to do so. Others automatically over-adapt to other people's expectations and have difficulties attending to their feelings and needs.
Some get anxious or easily irritated when they get closer and start depending on another person. Others have challenges in judging other persons for example, idealizing (or devaluating) to a great extent. Some consider therapy because they tend to remain in relationships that affect their well-being negatively.
Causes of relational problems
The causes of challenges in relationships can also vary. Previous adverse experiences can cause anxiety and distrust. Often, people have learned that relationships are not safe, and they have in different ways tried to cope.
There may be relational neglect and trauma from childhood. Other causes can be adverse experiences in adulthood such as in close relationships or at workplaces.
Relationships & individual therapy
In the therapy, the client and I will talk through what the client wants to have help with and find out where the obstacles are to find ways to approach and feel solid in relationships. We will also remain open to other areas in the client’s life where they wish changes to take place.
Those who come to me may have experiences of previous therapies where they feel that they learned a lot ('thinking and knowing') about themselves and relationships, but problems may have remained. There is a big difference between understanding the issues intellectually and experiencing emotionally what can be done constructively about relational problems.
In affect-focused therapy, that I work with, the clients discover the difference between 'thinking and knowing' a lot about problems and solutions, and 'feeling and knowing' about emotional processes that more concretely give energy and empowerment and thus opens up other ways to approach others. They also discover more about themselves and others on an interpersonal (emotional, relational) level.
Usually, the client and I work with an arrangement where the focus is on relational and emotional processes according to ISTDP. I experience that this arrangement has better results than a more intellectual approach to the problems. Other times we work based on a combination of ISTDP and seeking understanding and knowledge or a more cognitive-behavioral approach. The arrangement depends on what the client wishes to work with and what is needed for change.
