How does Group Therapy work?

Generally, a therapy group will meet once a week. A therapy group is different from a support group in that there is a therapist – psychologist or social worker – “in charge.” In the groups I’ve been in, the therapist will usually introduce a newcomer at their first meeting and the other members will give their names, then the group will start. People will generally self-identify as needing “some time” on any given night, not everyone has to talk each time and there is often not time for everyone to talk. The groups I was in lasted two to two and a half hours and maybe two or three people would have issues they needed to talk about. The therapist and the other group members would interact with and support or sometimes challenge the member who is talking. A group can be a very helpful way to work out familial or social anxiety issues, self esteem or distortion issues. Most groups have people within a certain age range – like adults, young adults or teens.

Support groups or self-help groups are different; led by lay leaders who usually have some training and focus on one type of problem such as bereavement, eating disorders or substance abuse Some of them – such as AA – have different meetings many times a week.

Depends on the issue and the group, and in particular on the therapist who runs it. A bad therapist can render group therapy worse than useless, while a good one can make a cohesive group and help everyone.

The key issue is sharing, not letting one or two people monopolize all the time.