Brief Strategic Therapy: a quick solution to a psychological problem

Many people still have a hard time acknowledging that they have a psychological problem and seeking help. Going to the psychologist is still an act of courage surrounded by many myths. Am I crazy if I go to the psychologist? How will my relatives react? Am I going to have to go to the psychologist all my life? And it is true that a psychological treatment can last a long time, depending on the problem in question, but we have found Brief Strategic Therapy which, as its name suggests, will reduce the time considerably. Do you need an urgent solution to your psychological problems?

What is Brief Strategic Therapy?

• Brief Strategic Therapy is a psychological intervention technique developed by Giorgio Nardone that focuses on problem solving. Seen like this, it doesn’t seem like anything new, right? Or perhaps the objective of the other therapies is not also to solve the problem that takes you to the psychologist?
• But there are some aspects that differentiate this therapy from the others. On the one hand, and as its name indicates, it is the duration of the treatment. This therapy is brief because in a few sessions you begin to see positive results and the psychological intervention does not usually exceed 20 sessions. Perhaps it is suspicious that there are therapies that last so long, some even years, when there is one that can solve the problem in less time.
• It should be noted that the diversity of therapies in psychology exists precisely because not all patients are served by the same methods and the same occurs with the problem to be treated. The human mind is complex and in psychological disorders there is no single effective way to deal with problems. But let’s go back to Brief Strategic Therapy and what makes it different and special.

The bases of Brief Strategic Therapy

Brief Strategic Therapy takes into account three fundamental aspects for its intervention:

• Psychological problems are the product of the way of seeing life that each person has, from their perspective.
• It is not necessary to find the cause of the psychological problem in question, but rather to understand how that problem works.
• The solutions that the patient has tried so far to solve their problem do not work, so what this therapy seeks is different solutions.

With these bases we can better understand that Brief Strategic Therapy focuses on the present. The past is only looked at to analyze the solutions that have been proposed so far and that have not worked. If they have not worked, we will have to try new strategies, right? We’ve always heard that if you want different results, you’ll have to do different things.

In this therapy, different perspectives are proposed, since psychological problems do not affect everyone equally and depend on each person’s worldview. And how you handle your emotions.

For what problems is Brief Strategic Therapy used?

• It seems interesting a therapy that, in addition to eliminating the symptoms of the disorder and dysfunctional behaviors, provides a different perspective and leads you to manage your reality in a more functional and healthy way. But, for what kind of problems is this therapy most effective?
• Brief Strategic Therapy has become one of the most effective in the treatment of eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia. Also depression, which is affecting more and more people, as well as anxiety disorders. In addition, it is very successful in cases of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, phobias or even relationship problems.
• It is always difficult to try to alleviate human suffering. This incessant and ultimately forced search for happiness, added to the pace of life that we lead with more responsibilities than anyone could bear, leads us to a state of suffering and confusion that often leads to a psychological disorder. Brief Strategic Therapy proposes to change the point from which we observe our life and our suffering, that is, our problems. It is a kind of invitation to make our point of view more flexible so that the original rigidity does not prevent us from seeing that the solution is within our reach.

How Brief Strategic Therapy works

1. Perhaps most of the psychological therapies that we know last so long because the first thing they do is look for the cause of the problem. In Brief Strategic Therapy the same does not happen, the objective is to find quick and effective solutions to solve complex problems. And in many cases it succeeds, but we insist that there is no single valid therapy, it depends on the person and the problem to be treated.
2. If the cause or origin of the disorder is not important for Brief Strategic Therapy, what is it looking for? The search is focused on knowing how the problem works, what strategies have not worked to solve it and looking for new approaches when proposing possible solutions. And how do you get to the solution?
3. The solution is found by means of the so-called complexity reducer. What solutions have you tried to solve your problem? Have they worked? Surely not, otherwise, you would not be seeking psychological help. What’s more, probably the solutions that you have put into practice not only have not solved the problem, but may have become part of the problem. So it’s time to forget about them, it’s time for a radical change.
4. If you always do the same things, you will always get the same results. Do you still have your problem? Then you will have to change your perspective, open your mind to other solutions, reflect from a different logic than usual, completely modify your vital schemes because it is evident that they are not being useful to you.
5. But be careful, we are talking about psychological therapy that must be done by a professional. And it is true that in the end, you have the resources at your fingertips and you will discover them for yourself. The same goes for the solutions, which you will reach yourself, but not alone, but with the help of this therapy and guided by your psychologist.