Some Treatment Planning Ideas
It can be hard to think of things to work on in therapy. Some people are aware of so much ‘stuff’ in their life they have difficulty deciding which bits to work on. This list identifies objectives (like ‘interpersonal skills’) and specific problems (‘finding more useful ways to ‘argue’) that are important to people. What one can work on is not limited to this list, o
f course:
I feel inadequate
Anxiety
I am a bit shy around people
Anger
Moods – especially feeling ‘down’
I need a new type of job
My mental health “stuff”
Communication
Sadness
How do I find a job? I have a lot of STRESS
I am too busy
How do I grieve (& not ‘lose it’)? A chronic medical problem
How do I not let people bother me so much? How do I get people to change? I do not need to be here! How do I deal with my defenses? Assertiveness training
Ways to cope better
How do I relax? My spiritual life is ‘shot’
Having (sober) fun
I have few (or no) hobbies or interests
I have little hope
I tend to be impatient
Life has no meaning
People misunderstand me
Relapse prevention plan
How do I not use again? I want a good career
Being a parent or a partner is tough! Who am I now? Money management
Who do I want to be? I have no/few real friends
I have important medical problems
Handling feelings
Fear(s)
Sleep problems
I obsess about ______________
My life is a mess! Legal problems
A traumatic thing happened
S*xual ‘stuff’
It is too hard to stop using drugs or alcohol
I have good reasons to use drugs or alcohol
Been clean, lost it
I really miss ________________
I am not worth much
I want to get in shape (physically)
‘Codependent’ thinking
Evidence-based therapeutic approaches include:
- Individual Psychotherapy - holder of a psychotherapy permit from the Order (College) of Psychologists of Quebec - includes insight/growth- orientated therapy; character development; anxiety; depressive symptoms; sleep difficulties; grief, trauma, self-esteem; assertiveness, etc.
- Habits, addictive behaviours (substance/alcohol in coordination, as needed, with other organizations); s*x; Internet; shopping, smoking, etc.
- Social/Professional Confidence; Performance and productivity enhancement; Resilience training; Stress management
- Eye-Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)
(see www.emdrcanada.org or http://www.emdria.org/ ou http://www.emdr-france.org/ (français) o www.emdr-es.org/ (Espagnol)
http://emdr.it/ (Italiano) or http://www.emdr.gr/ (ελληνικά)
- Cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT)
- Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy
- Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT)
- Clinical Hypnotherapy
- Eye MovementTechnique (EMT)
- Motivational Interviewing
- Solution-Focused Therapy
- Couple and S*x Counselling (communication; emotional and physical intimacy; conflict resolution; infidelity; couple enhancement; spirituality
- Psychosocial Intervention
- Existential / Humanistic / Buddhist-Orientated psychotherapy:
- the purpose or meaning in living;
- choices to be made;
- personal agency or "voice"
- working with ambivalence / avoidance
- affiliation, attunement and attachment needs;
- how to suffer "more effectively". Membership in:
- L’Ordre des travailleurs sociaux, thérapeutes conjugaux et familial du Québec (1986);
- the Washington-based Society for S*x Therapy and Research - SSTAR (1991);
- the Montreal Study Group on Trauma and Dissociation - Department of Psychiatry, St. Mary's Hospital (1998);
- EMDR (Eye-Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) Canada (2000);
- the EMDR Interest Group of the Psychiatry Department of the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC-Royal Victoria Hospital) (2002); and
- the Canadian Federation of Clinical Hypnosis - Quebec Division (2008). Studies completed in Psychology at McGill University (Personality and Abnormal Psychology), graduate studies at Washington University (MSW,ACSW), and post-graduate studies (Certification) at the Faculty of Medicine at Laval University in Québec City. Also completed a Licentiate Teaching Diploma from the Royal Academy of Music, London, U.K. (focusing on the psychological aspects of creative performance). The therapeutic environment is seen as a very important element in the therapeutic process, and the office offers a setting that encourages a sense of safety, security, and comfort. The office and waiting room have been designed to be a peaceful, secluded, and quiet environment and access is provided only to clients by use of a coded entry. A separate door allows clients to leave the office without having to return through the waiting room. The building is located in a very pleasant neighbourhood within close reach of a Metro and public transport and parking is easily and readily available. Experience: Richard Rapoport provides psychotherapy, s*x and couple therapy, and performance/resiliency training, provideng addiction, trauma (PTSD), abuse, palliative care and EMDR intervention with over thirty years of experience in private practice and in the public sector (Quebec health and social services). He has worked at the CLSC in Cote-des-Neiges and had been affiliated with the Psychology Department of the MUHC (McGill University Health Centre) for over 20 years, has served in and worked with the Canadian Armed Forces, and was previously Clinical Supervisor (mental health, community services, nursing program) at the Kanesatake Health Center, Mohawk Territory. He has developed highly successful couple enhancement groups for the Psychology Department at the Royal Victoria Hospital (MUHC - McGill University Health Centre); conflict resolution, anger management, weight control and smoking cessation programs for the Faculty of Medicine at St. Louis University's Department of Health Promotion, as well as programs for ma*****na dependence, s*x and Internet addiction, enhancing s*xual desire, and "life coaching" (goal-setting and time management, thinking logically and creatively, making well-informed decisions, and boosting problem-solving skills). For over twenty years, Richard had been the Animator and/or Interim Executive Director of the l'Association québecoise d'entraide des anciens combattants de la guerre du Vietnam (Quebec Vietnam Veteran Outreach Centre) and has been a member of and worked with the Canadian Forces. He has presented conflict resolution training program to the Riverside School Board, has given performance enhancement training to National Hockey League players, world-class athletes as well as to private organizations. He has created a highly effective job interview skills and social confidence training program and has provided counselling or psychotherapy services to members of Urgence Santé of Montreal (Emergency Medical Technicians), Police officers from the City of Laval, and employees of the Société de transport de Montréal (STM), Veterans Canada, to the U.S. Army Drug and Alcohol Prevention and Counselling Program (ADAPCP); the Québec government's CSST (for workplace injuries), SAAQ (for automobile-accident related difficulties and IVAC (for victims of criminal acts) programs. Richard also teaches in Montreal and is an internationally-published author and lecturer. He was "ShrinkRap" for over eleven years on CJAD radio in Montréal and on CFRB in Toronto. Other television, radio and print media activities include CBC Radio One, CTV/CFCF-TV, TVA, Global Television, The Mystery Channel, MenTV, "The Gazette" (Montreal), and The National Film Board of Canada. Clinical Training, Rounds and Presentations: Post-Graduate clinical training in couple and family therapy was completed at The Family Treatment Institute in St. Louis, Missouri with a concentration on enhancing performance and resiliency skills in individuals, couples and families, based on work done with the U.S. Army; a two-year intensive Clinical Internship in S*x and Couple Therapy with the Psychology Department of the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC-Royal Victoria Hospital). Twenty-five years of professional affiliation with various activities (intake evaluation and on-going treatment, couple enhancement groups; case presentations; participation in a variety of professional presentations at conferences and attendance at S*x and Couple Therapy Clinical Rounds ; and clinical continuing education with the Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard University Department of Psychiatry, and The Menninger Institute, Topeka, Kansas, in the areas of trauma, anxiety and depression, stress inoculation and resiliency . Liscensed by L’Ordre des psychologues du Québec to practice psychotherapy. Member in professional organizations includes L’Ordre des travailleurs sociaux, thérapeutes conjugal et familial du Québec; Canadian Federation of Clinical Hypnosis - Quebec Division; EMDR (Eye-Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) Canada; and the Washington-based Society for S*x Therapy and Research.
