What Is Psychotherapy?
Psychotherapy is not only a journey to help a person get rid of their problems, but actually a journey to rediscover themselves.
Case Example:
When a 30-year-old young woman came to me, she was complaining of constant headaches. She had gone from doctor to doctor, had every test done, but nothing had been found. During our sessions, it became clear that these headaches were actually the physical expression of the anxiety she had carried for years. She had been criticized too much as a child, and whatever she did was never seen as enough. The headache was her unconscious saying, I cannot take it anymore. As therapy progressed, both her anxiety decreased and her headaches disappeared on their own.
Holistic Psychotherapy Approach
No single method fits everyone. In the holistic approach, the main principle is to shape therapy according to the person’s story.
Case Example:
A young man came to me because of exam anxiety. Before the exam, he trembled and could not even move his hand. At first glance, it looked like only performance anxiety. We worked on thought patterns with CBT; we questioned his fear of what if I fail. When we went back to childhood with dynamic therapy, we noticed that his father constantly told him, you will never become a man. With schema therapy, we transformed his inner belief of inadequacy. By the end of the sessions, he took his exam calmly, and more importantly, he began to face not only exams but life more courageously.
In Which Situations Is Psychotherapy Used?
Psychotherapy is effective for many different problems. It provides deep change especially in anxiety, addiction, sexual dysfunctions, and personality structures.
Case Examples:
- A businessperson came to me because of addiction. He was smoking 2 packs a day. In fact, cigarettes were not a way for him to breathe, but a tool he used to take refuge in the feeling of loneliness. When he faced his loneliness during the therapy process, quitting smoking became much easier.
- A young woman could not have sexual intercourse in the first years of her marriage (vaginismus). The words she heard from her mother in childhood, sexuality is shameful, had left deep traces in her unconscious. In therapy, we transformed these beliefs and established a secure bond. Now she has a healthy sexual life with her spouse.
- A client with narcissistic personality traits reacted even to the smallest criticism at work with angry outbursts. In fact, we realized that they had always been made to feel inadequate in childhood. When they began to see the fragile child inside, criticism no longer felt destructive and became constructive.
Focusing On Root Causes
Dealing with symptoms may provide temporary relief. However, for real healing, it is necessary to focus on root causes.
Case Examples:
- • I had a client who experienced panic attacks. In sessions, they remembered being left alone for days when their mother was hospitalized during childhood. Their panic attacks today were actually the cry of that helpless little child. When we compassionately cared for that wound, the attacks also began to disappear.
- • A young student with performance anxiety was actually carrying the burden of their father’s words since childhood: you are a failure. As we worked on this, they learned that success is not measured only by grades; you define your own worth.
Benefits Of Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy creates positive effects on both mental and physical health.
Case Examples:
- A woman who did not want to do anything because of depression realized the anger she had suppressed for years during the therapy process. As a child, she had constantly been told to stay quiet. When she began to express her anger in a healthy way, the fog of depression began to lift.
- A client with low self-confidence feared being abandoned in every relationship. In sessions, they remembered that their mother often locked them in their room as punishment in childhood. When they recognized the loneliness of that little child, the fear of abandonment in adult life decreased and they began to build healthier relationships.
Conclusion: Psychotherapy In A Holistic Health Perspective
Psychotherapy exists not only to eliminate psychological symptoms, but to transform the person’s whole life.
Case Examples:
- • A client who had been receiving treatment for stomach problems for years realized that they had always kept their anger inside. As they began to express the emotions they could not digest, their stomach problems also decreased.
- • Another client living with fibromyalgia pain experienced relief in their pain when they worked on their inner feeling of worthlessness. Because their body was actually carrying the cry of their soul.
- • A young person who could not sleep remembered being exposed to their father’s sudden anger outbursts in childhood. As we worked on these fears in therapy, they began to sleep peacefully again.
