Integrative Therapy
Integrative therapy and technical eclecticism are approaches to therapy that aim to put diverse theories and techniques together as one system.
Some mental health professionals believe that single therapy approaches are the most effective way to treat mental health concerns. That utilizing a single methodology at a time works best.
Others use theories and approaches to create unique treatment plans that benefit from the effectiveness of multiple approaches. At Sequoia Behavioral Health, we use this integrative approach to ensure each client gets the best individualized treatment, tailored to their needs and goals.
What is Integrative Therapy?
Integrative therapy uses different techniques from multiple theories and types of therapies. Rather than focusing on one therapy method, integrative therapy focuses on combining specific therapy techniques to tailor treatment to the individual.
The integrative therapy approach is flexible in some ways, yet it still has structure and organization. Think of each technique as a different kind of flower. Integrative therapy would be the bouquet. Each flower compliments the others to create a cohesive arrangement.
Integrative Therapy Concepts
Integrative therapy does not use one single approach, yet therapists using this technique still follow some key concepts:
- There is no such thing as one singular theory that will explain all behavior or humans
- Different individuals may benefit from different approaches
- The client and therapist should tailor a therapeutic journey based on the client
- The heart of this therapy approach and its effectiveness is built on the relationship between the client and therapist
The concept of integrative therapy focuses primarily on the fact that therapy should be—and is—different for different people. Therefore, everyone deserves their own personalized approach.
Common Methods Used in Integrative Therapy
Some therapeutic approaches work better together than others. Integrative therapists use three particular approaches most often to create an integrative therapy plan.
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a talk therapy that assists the individual to recognize their beliefs, thoughts, and emotions. From there, they learn how to redirect them when they become negative or harmful.
Psychodynamic therapy focuses on how an individual’s past experiences and unconscious processes affect their current behavior. It helps the client become more self-aware and positively change how they manifest their past in the present.
Humanistic therapy focuses on the essence of a person as a unique individual, rather than a diagnosis. It focuses on their individual nature to help them shed debilitating assumptions and attitudes of themselves.
What is Eclectic Therapy?
Eclecticism is a relatively new therapy related to integrative therapy. It focuses on the results of treatment, rather than the theories and techniques used.
For example, instead of treatment being either CBT or dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT), eclectic therapy picks out a few techniques of each. An eclectic therapist chooses only the elements that they believe are beneficial to the individual client.
Different Types of Eclectic Therapy
[Eclectic Therapy] focuses on the results of treatment, rather than the theories and techniques used.
Of course, as a therapy with an emphasis on the individual, eclectic therapy is going to look different for everyone.
However, there are different types of eclectic therapy:
- Brief eclectic therapy (BET) takes techniques from both CBT and psychodynamic therapy to support people as they overcome a traumatic event.
- Multimodal therapy assesses seven modalities of the client to help understand the individual and develop a personal treatment plan. These modalities are behavior, affect (emotions), sensations, imagery, cognition, interpersonal relationships, and drugs and biology (BASIC ID).
- Cognitive-interpersonal therapy combines interpersonal therapy and CBT. It teaches the individual to understand, and then change, their thoughts that may cause problems in their lives.
- Transtheoretical therapy focuses on how people change throughout their lives and what that process is.
- The three-stage model draws from other theories to create the three stages of the therapeutic process. First is the exploration stage, then the insight stage, and lastly the action stage.
- Cyclical Psychodynamics explores a client’s interpersonal relationships in order to learn about their emotional experiences and interaction cycles. Then, the client learns how to create new interpersonal skills. The relationship between the therapist and the client is a particularly vital factor in this approach.
Just like eclectic therapy uses aspects of different treatments, a therapist can combine different types of eclectic therapy for the best outcome for their client.
Are Integrative Therapy and Technical Eclecticism the Same?
The concept of integrative therapy focuses primarily on the fact that therapy should be—and is—different for different people.
Integrative and eclectic therapy seem quite similar. So, are they the same thing? Some say yes, while many others say no.
Both therapies reject the idea of sticking to one single therapy or method. Both put the therapist-client relationship at the forefront of treatment. However, the two also have some key differences.
Integrative therapy creates cohesion among isolated elements taken from the different theories, and seamlessly combines them to create a unique therapeutic experience. Essentially, it creates an entirely new treatment plan.
On the other hand, eclectic therapy focuses more on the individual techniques themselves. It draws techniques from various therapies, but does not necessarily put it all together as one. Eclectic therapy is more similar to “cherry picking” different therapy techniques while integrative therapy fuses different approaches together.
What to Expect
Integrative and eclectic therapy can include a wide variety of psychotherapy techniques from different types of therapy including:
- Eye movement desensitization reprocessing (EMDR)
- CBT
- DBT
- Internal family systems
- Somatic experiencing
It can also include various alternatives therapies such as:
- Recreational and art therapy
- Sound therapy
- Acupuncture
Integrative psychotherapy is all about learning about the individual—their personality, their problems, their situation, their goals, and their expectations. The client and therapist explore these in order to pick out which elements of various therapies they want to utilize.
Benefits of Integrative Therapy
Integrative therapy is truly individualized for each client and their unique needs. Even people with the same mental health concerns can have entirely different therapy experiences.
No two people are exactly alike, so we can’t use a one size fits all approach to therapy. That is why integrative therapy is beneficial and effective. It’s holistic, flexible, and inclusive.
The treatment takes you and all of your individuality and uses it to drive the therapy plan. Integrative therapy makes it possible to encompass multiple disorders or problems at the same time.
Who Benefits from Integrative Therapy?
Integrated therapy can benefit all types of people and a wide array of problems. Evidence shows that using a diverse range of psychotherapeutic methods can benefit people’s mental health—even if those methods seem counterintuitive.
Integrative therapy can be beneficial for everyone, including those struggling with trauma. Some other common struggles effectively treated with integrative and eclectic therapy include:
- Anxiety
- Stress
- Low self-esteem
- Depression
- Substance use
- Comorbid disorders
- Dual diagnosis
A Truly Individualized Approach
Sequoia Behavioral Health is an inpatient treatment program dedicated to providing our clients with truly individualized care. The team at Sequoia are well trained in a variety of therapies and ready to provide holistic, quality care.
Everyone faces challenges, but no one should have to struggle alone. Schedule a call today to see how Sequoia Behavioral Health can help you.