Therapeutic Communication

When a person is physically sick, the doctors examine the patient, assess the cause behind the illness and provide treatment accordingly to cure him. However, when a person is facing mental problems such as stress or depression, the human mind being so complex, to get to the real reasons behind the shattered state of mind a person finds himself in, is not easy. This is where psychotherapy steps in. A psychotherapist makes use of various kinds of therapeutic communication techniques, both verbal as well as non-verbal, to get to the bottom of a person's real fears and challenges in life and tries to heal and change him for the better.

Therapeutic Communication Techniques

Therapeutic communication is known as the "talking cure". A therapist talks to the patient, using the various communication techniques, so that the patient feels comfortable expressing his ideas, feelings and fears to him. The therapist on his part, listens carefully, giving the patient full and undivided attention. The therapist offers his empathy to the patient, without being judgmental. At the same time, the therapist retains his objectivity while listening so that he is able to analyze the information provided by the patient and can suggest solutions and remedies to deal with the same, thus improving the patient's mental health.

Therapeutic communication always takes place face-to-face between the patient and the therapist. There are three steps involved in this therapy. The first one is to collect relevant information from the patient which would help ascertain the reasons behind his state of mind. The second step is to assess the information. And finally, the third step is to suggest modifications in the patient's behavior as well as educate him on his mental health so that he is emotionally and physically healed. An important aspect of therapeutic communication is to keep whatever is shared between the patient and the therapist confidential.

Although there are many techniques used by therapists, yet the three most common ones are - behavioral, dynamic and cognitive. The cognitive approach tries to replace the faulty thinking patterns of a patient with a more constructive and healthy outlook. The behavioral approach focuses on replacing the existing destructive behavior patterns with more productive actions. The dynamic approach helps the patients to identify the underlying motivations and fears, which might be the root cause of their faulty behavior and thinking patterns. The health care is replete with successful examples wherein patients who were suffering from terminal diseases such as cancer or AIDS were able to express their grief, anger, fears and all other emotions they were experiencing due to the usage of these three communication techniques by the therapist.

Therapeutic Communication Skills

For this technique to be successful, a therapist should have very good listening skills. He should be able to interpret both verbal as well as non-verbal information provided by the patient. A therapist should be able to recognize and assess the patient's choice of words, the changes in his voice pitch, his hesitancy in talking certain things, any inconsistencies or contradictions and all other nuances in his conversation. Besides listening skills, a therapist should have good interviewing skills as well so that the patient is motivated enough to talk to him. Both direct questioning as well as sharing one's own experience with the patient, should be wisely used while interviewing the person. The more patient, attentive, understanding, courteous and non-judgmental a therapist is, the more he will be successful in building trust with the patient.

Therapeutic communication is a very successful tool which helps the patients to understand and confront their feelings and thoughts. During the therapy, patients are suggested some reality based solutions to replace their faulty behavior and thinking patterns. A therapist is thus a person who initiates "healing" and "change" in a patient. So, to ensure the success of therapy, a therapist should be sensitive, empathizing, open-minded and a good judge of human behavior.