Schema Therapy offers new hope in Psychological Therapy

When common Psychological therapies failed      

Dave (name changed) told his psychologist that he often wakes up feeling anxious without knowing why and he would often panic for no reason. He went to see a number psychologists, counselors and psychiatrists but his situation did not change much.

Panic disorder, bipolar depression, as recently dramatized in popular Hollywood movie A Star is Born, personality disorders are often difficult to achieve remission despite psychotherapy and pharmacological drug therapy.

Although CBT is often used for major depressive disorder, there are studies that found that CBT was ineffective when treating severely depressed patients (Driessen & Hollon, 2010). Other research (Johnsen and Friborg (2015)) found CBT to get less effective over time. This is because CBT focuses on patient’s cognition or thinking. However, we are more than just thinking beings. We have emotions and deep psychological needs and many unmet childhood needs. In such cases, schema therapy is able to help those suffering from these difficult psychological disorders connect with these experiences.

Schema Therapy offers new hope

Schema therapy (ST), also known as third wave CBT, was devised as the treatment for more pervasive, enduring psychological disorders, such as major depression and Borderline Personality Disorder, in which other psychotherapy methods such traditional CBT was less successful. Dr. Jeffrey Young, the founder of ST who also founded the International Society for Schema Therapy believed that to successfully treat these and most psychological disorders successfully and in a more lasting fashion, the therapist needs to help the patient uncover and change their deep subconscious programs – called schema that have locked us in repetitive negative and self-sabotaging patterns of behavior.

Training in Schema Therapy is Effective in successful treatment outcome

In schema therapy, the patient works with a therapist to uncover and understand their schemas or early maladaptive schemas. Schemas are unhelpful patterns that many of us develop when our emotional needs are not met when we were children. The effectiveness of schema therapy is reported by numerous research such as the one by Hashemi and Darvishzadeh (2016). The researchers concluded that schema therapy training is effective in reducing the symptoms of depression, promoting mental health, and preventing mental injuries. Schema therapy’s effectiveness can be attributed to specific elements such as the therapist’s bonding with the patient through re-parenting and schema change. The therapy tracks back into the history and past traumatic childhood experiences of the patients and identifies how their current negative emotions and behaviors are affected by those past experiences. These has not be done in other counselling, psychological, and psychiatric therapies which often focus only on the current situations of the patients. In doing, Schema Therapy is able to reformat our past negative experiences which all of us have despite the best effort and intention of our parents. Only then can we break free of our patterns of negative behaviors which other forms of psychological and psychiatric therapies had not been able to help patients do.

Finally, Dave was recommended by one of his friends to visit psychologists at the International Psychology Centre (www.Psychology.com.my) who were trained in Schema Therapy. On the first session itself, his therapist identified a childhood memory where he woke one day and found his dad had gone away. Although now he knows his dad was away on a business trip but at that time no one had explained that sufficiently to him and he felt scared and abandoned. This was how he developed his abandonment schema. The psychologist hypnotized Dave back to that memory and appeared with young Dave to give him the assurance he needed at that time that his dad will be back and be with him whilst he missed his dad. Dave’s traumatic memory was reformatted. His abandonment schema was transformed to a healthy schema. Now Dave is able to sleep well, feels confident with himself and is able to feel happy which he has not been able to do for a very long time.

Psychologists at the International Psychology Centre (www.Psychology.com.my) are trained in Schema Therapy which have helped hundreds of patients suffering chronic psychological disorders that other therapies have failed to treat.

The International Psychology Centre (www.Psychology.com.my) with the Malaysian Association for Psychotherapy (www.MalaysianPsychotherapy.net) will be organizing a Schema Therapy certification training accredited by the International Society for Schema Therapy at the post-Conference workshop of the 4^th International Psychotherapy, Counseling & Psychiatry Conference: www.ISPCP-TRCP.org, April 29^th- May 1^st 2020. Psychologists, counsellors, psychiatrists and other mental health practitioners are invited to register as well as presenting their research or clinical work at the  conference which will be published in the International Journal of Psychotherapy, Counseling & Psychiatry (www.IJPCP.com).

This article is contributed by the International Psychology Centre. For further information please contact:

☎ :+ 603 27277434

Info@Psychology.com.my

www.SchemaTherapyAsia.net; www.Psychology.com.my

Fb: SchemaTherapyAsia

Blog: malaysianpsychology.wordpress.com

Speech Delay is NOT a Terminal Disease and It can be Helped.

Keana was a beautiful and charming girl and everything about her was perfect in the eyes of her parents, Oliver and Valerie. When Keana was 2, according to Oliver and Valerie, it was as if she was muted; nothing seemed to come out from her mouth. ‘Probably she’s just a late bloomer’, this was the thought of Oliver and Valerie. At the age of pre-school (2 and a half years old), Keana could only speak up to 4 words and some of these words were prompted. Once again, the same thought had struck Oliver and Valeria that Keana was probably fine, anyhow she was only 2 and a half years old hence it was excusable for her to speak less.

By Keana’s 4^th birthday, Oliver and Valerie noticed that her language was odd. Though she seemed to be learning individual words and was using gestures, her language was very tangential. Things just were not making sense and she would jump from one topic to another so quickly no one could really follow her. There were also lots of missing or distorted sounds in her words. Without context, or if Oliver and Valeria were only 'half-listening', they did not know what she said.

‘Something was not right. This was not normal. Something was wrong with Keana’s speech.’

Oliver and Valerie went to their general practitioner to gain advice on such matter. But the doctor assured both of them that everything was fine. She was just-starting-to or just-about-to reach all of her milestones of speech development. Being not convinced, they went for another visit with Keana’s clinical pediatrician to know more about her ‘problem’. The pediatrician hypothesized that Keana was having difficulties with her speech and in order to conduct a speech language evaluation and enhancement program, a licensed psychologist who practices speech therapy would be required. Therefore, Oliver and Valerie were referred to International Psychology Centre by Keana’s pediatrician, who was able to recognize her speech issue.

Oliver and Valerie called up ChildPsych^TM, the Child Psychology division of the International Psychology Centre to make an appointment for an initial assessment. To be able to diagnose Keana’s speech issue, The Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale, Fifth Edition (SB5) had been employed and the test was administered by the panel of psychologists in the International Psychology Centre to observe how Keana solved problems and why she made the errors she did.

The assessment had revealed that Keana scored relatively poor in the verbal aspects of SB5 and with that diagnosis, it was then concluded that Keana was suffering from the speech delay, a form of communication disorder being characterized as maladaptive speech development. According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), an updated version of classification and diagnostic tool for psychological disorders, this psychological disorder might affect not only the ability to read and write, it would also have negative impact on Keana’s attention, and socialization.

A programme of child psychotherapy which emphasized the speech and language enhancement was recommended for Keana. Speech Therapy was the essence of this programme as it assessed speech, language, cognitive-communication, and oral/feeding/swallowing skills to identify types of communication problems (articulation; fluency; voice; receptive and expressive language disorders, etc) and the best way to treat them.

Dealing with Children with Speech Delay; a Common Child Issue of New Era

Dr. Edward Chan, Principal Consultant Child Psychologist of ChidPsych^TM, followed up the session with Speech Therapy therapeutic program. He began the session with a simple ice-breaking session to enable him to build rapport with Keana. After that session, he employed the Language Intervention Activity whereby he would interact with Keana, by playing and talking, using pictures, book or any ongoing events to enable the stimulation of Keana’s language development. During the session, Dr. Edward would also model correct pronunciation and use repetition exercises to build speech and language skills of Keana. In this case, a 1-to-1 speech therapy session would be best to enable a speedy progress of Keana’s speech development.

Most of the children suffering from speech delay lacked of the ability to utilize oral-motor coordination. Seeing this was one of the issues Keana was facing, Dr. Edward employed the model of Oral-motor/feeding and swallowing therapy. He would use a variety of oral exercises including facial massage and various tongue, lip, and jaw exercises to strengthen the muscles of the mouth. He too worked with different food textures and temperatures to increase Keana’s oral awareness during eating and swallowing.

In the following sessions, a specific therapeutic program, Articulation Therapy was used in aiding Keana’s speech development. In this Articulation stage or also known as the sound-production stage, Dr. Edward would model correct sounds and syllables for a child, often during play activities. The level of play was age-appropriate and related to the child's specific needs and space for growth. He also physically showed Keana how to make certain sounds, such as the "r" sound, and demonstrated how to move the tongue to produce specific sounds. This stage required a several sessions to follow to ensure Keana was able to master the skills for articulating the correct sound of speech.

Being able to produce a correct word pronunciation was not the only main focus of speech therapy. The motivation to articulate a speech was crucial and it was seemed to be low in children with speech delay. They did not find speaking rewarding and there was nothing that motivated them to speak. Hence, seeing this as an issue to be tackled to aid Keana, Dr. Edward used behavioral modification which mainly focused on the use of encouragement as the mean for rewards. Children with the age of Keana were prone to accept encouragement and with that, it could in turn boost their confidence and self-esteem which led to the rise of their speech motivation.

After the therapeutic program, Keana was able to talk like how a 4-year-old would. She did not only speak her only 6-word vocabulary, but rather a complete sentence. She would also ask permission before she went for the loo. The joy and happiness in both Oliver and Valerie were immeasurable the moment they saw Keana being able to speak and socialize with other children without signing or pointing.

“The problem of speech delay is not the pronunciation of words itself, but the motivation to articulate a speech. Once we are able to help children to deal with the lack of speech motivation, they will be able to understand and appreciate the value and importance of speech,” said Dr WengLok Chan, Principal Consultant Child Psychologist of ChildPsych™, Centre for Children and Adolescences Psychology.

This article is contributed by ChildPsych™, Centre for Children and Adolescence Psychology of International Psychology Centre’s team of psychologist and psychonutritional therapists. Contact them at the International Psychology Centre Sdn Bhd, 11-1 Wisma Laxton, Jalan Desa, Taman Desa Kuala Lumpur.

Call 03-27277434, e-mail child@psychology.com.my or log on to http://www.psychology.com.my/ or https://www.facebook.com/pages/Child-Psychology-International-Psychology-Centre/1423663507845136 or http://chpsych.blogspot.com/

Malaysia Talk : Speech and Language Delay

Talk on 'HOW TO OVERCOME LEARNING DIFFICULTIES'

There would be a talk on 'HOW TO OVERCOME LEARNING DIFFICULTIES'

There are many children out there who are suffering from disorders that can inhibit their learning abilities. they maybe having high IQ's, but be failing all the subjects in school???

How can we help them???

That is why we are having this talk to get public awareness so that these children can be helped from an early age.

The talk is on 30/07/2011 from 10.00 am till 11.30am at the following address:

11-1, Wisma Laxton, Jalan Desa, Taman Desa, Off Jalan Klang Lama, 58100 Kuala Lumpur

There is a minimum fees charge of RM60.

Please do pass the message around so that more people would have the chance to be aware of the situation and help these children.

If you have any queries, please contact Kogilavani Rajendran at:

Tel (Off): 03-79824424
Tel (Hp):017-2072061

Hope to hear from you soon!!!

Thank you :)

Psychological Problems Faced by Children...

 Mental Retardation

Mental retardation is a condition diagnosed before age 18 that includes below-average general intellectual function, and a lack of the skills necessary for daily living

Autism

This disorder makes kids to experience the world differently from the way most other kids do. It's hard for kids with autism to talk with other people and express themselves using words.

Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder

ADHD is a problem with inattentiveness, over-activity, impulsivity, or a combination.

Asperger Syndrome

 Asperger syndrome is often considered a high functioning form of autism. People with this syndrome have difficulty interacting socially, repeat behaviors, and often are clumsy. Motor milestones may be delayed.

Learning Disability

A learning disability, or learning disorder, is not a problem with intelligence. Learning disorders are caused by a difference in the brain that affects how information is received, processed, or communicated. Children and adults with learning disabilities have trouble processing sensory information because they see, hear, and understand things differently.

Seperation Anxiety

Separation anxiety is a developmental stage during which the child experiences anxiety when separated from the primary caregiver.

Specific Phobia

It is an extreme fear of a specific object or situation that is out of proportion to the actual danger or threat. In addition, an individual with a specific phobia is distressed about having the fear, or experiences significant interference in his or her day-to-day life because of the fear.

 School Phobia

 

It is a complex and extreme form of anxiety about going to school (but not of the school itself as the name suggests), can have many causes (see below) and can include related anxiety disorders such as agoraphobia and selective mutism. Symptoms include stomachaches, nausea, fatigue, shaking, a racing heart and frequent trips to the toilet.

 The disorders that are given above are the common problem that are faced by the children in the present time. There are various factors that causes these disorders. It is important for parents and teachers to know the symptoms and signs of these disorders so that they can take early precautions. 

There are screening, assessments and intervention programs that are conducted in International Psychology Centre.

There are also certification courses conducted on:  

•  Sandplay Therapy 
• Child Psychology Certification Course
•  Family Therapy 
• Clinical Supervision
• Play Therapy

For further Information, Please do contact:

Kogilavani Rajendran

Supervised Psychologist,

International Psychology Centre

Tel: 0379824424

The Future Leaders.....

              

              A LETTER TO OUR FUTURE LEADERS 

                    by : Michelle R Kidwell

Oh precious Leaders of tomorrow

I write these words

Praying for your guidance

Tomorrow may seem far away

And the future sometimes

May seem bleak

But you my children

Are gifts from Heaven

Sent to brighten the way.

I pray that your path be

Lead in ligh

Do not follow the

Darkened way

Satan will try to grab

A hold of you

Tell him

To go away.

I pray for you

Our children

Our future

To have a bright

Future

And that you may lead

The way

With love.