Resource Therapy is a wonderfully brief therapy which has undoubtedly and proudly evolved from John and Helen Watkin’s Ego State Therapy.
I believe there has been some confusion because of these origins. Resource Therapy is not Ego State Therapy.It has distinct differences and clear protocols and certain advantages with it’s powerful interventions.
Both Ego State and Resource Therapy (RT) are ‘Parts’ Therapies. Go to see legends like Pat Ogden, Kathy Steele, Roger Solomon, Colin Ross, Norman Doidge or Maggie Phillips and other experienced leaders in the therapy world
Trauma informed therapies are a must in psychological practice.
and you will all hear them repeatedly mention ‘Part’s. Both Ego State and RT find the part of the personality that needs to change in order to do therapeutic work. This is especially useful in trauma informed therapy.
Resource Therapy has a variety of tools that Ego State Therapy does not.
New with Resource Therapy
No need for Hypnosis: Ego State Therapy required therapists to be trained in hypnosis. Resource Therapists do not need to be clinical hypnotherapists or
Hypnosis is a powerful intervention however it is not a requirement in Resource Therapy.
learn hypnotic induction. All well and good if you are though! Resource Therapy’s protocols and actions are sufficient to address client issues.
Introjects are NOT Ego States. Resource Therapy holds that Introjects are merely internalized impressions of a person, animal or animate. These are Resource State specific. Ego State Therapy sees Introjects as needing to be transformed into Ego States which with therapist must worked with extensively and changed. RT works with Introjects in new and refreshing ways.
No need for an arrest
I attended a Cognitive Behavioral Therapy CBT Imaginal Re-scripting workshop last year. Here we were fighting with the perpetrator Introject, sending the Introject to the police or the moon or wherever. We then had to repeat the process several times from each Ego State perspective, child, adult and so forth. Time consuming! While it was hilarious, in my opinion it may not have been as beneficial to the client.
Inner peace can be achieved with Parts Therapy
RT therapists do not attempt to change the Introject, we stick with the client and it is the client who decides what actions (if any) happen for the Introject. This is usually achieved in the one session.
RT is certainly positively client focused. This further empowers the client in processing trauma, or rejection to feel safe and loved. RT Therapists have been trained in systemic protocols to facilitate this quickly and efficiently.
All our parts (Resource States) are there to help and deserve unconditional love.
Resource Therapy has straightforward Diagnostic Criteria and Treatment Actions. Resource Therapists are skilled in working with the clients presenting problems by diagnosing the concern, NOT the person. They then work according to the prescribed 15 Treatment Actions. These are systematic protocols for working with clients impacted by depression, anxiety, chronic pain, grief and loss, below par performance, and so much more.
Resource Therapy helps speed clients to their goals quickly.
Resource Therapy Personality Theory. Resource States are physical and develop as coping mechanism over time, usually in childhood according to RT Personality Theory. Ego State Therapy’s define Ego States as split offs from the personality, this is derivative of a psycho dynamic perspective.
Neuropsychologists knows the brain can adapt and grow
Resource Therapy’s theory is supported by contemporary neuroscience and our understanding of the brains unique ability to rewire and adapt. Read more here Neuroscience and Resource Therapy. RT taps directly into this key element of psychological therapy, as it harnesses our neurons ability to heal with defined interventions – Resource Therapy Actions 1-15.
Open the door to safety and security for your clients today. Find a RT workshop near you!
With a headline like that you might think I am anti Mindfulness Meditation. Far from it. When I was working at the Langton Centre, Surry Hills, Sydney early 2000’s several respected mentors – Gary T, Sally T, Joe B, Amanda M and Alison L introduced me to the benefits of mindfulness. These amazing practitioners were using it personally and professionally.
Jonathan Kabat-Zin, Mindfulness Guru
So I jumped in, signing up for classes, workshops, and reading professional texts – Mindfulness based Cognitive Behavioural Therapy by John Teasdale Mark Williams and Zindel Segal.
Loads of great books Jonathan Kabat-Zin, Thich Nhat Hahn and Eckhart Tolle. I took many training workshops including Dr Bruno Cayoun’s Mindfulness-integrated cognitive Behaviour Therapy (MiCBT).
Meditation promotes awareness, lowers stress and offers insight.
I was mindful and using it a great deal with clients in both group and individual settings. Clients loved it and so did I. Sadly they clients reported that while they had gained insights they still were feeling bad. Mindfulness meditation has terrific benefits and I am totally for clients getting the most out of it. Who couldn’t profit from being in the present moment with awareness, right? I agree.
I don’t use it today in my counseling sessions. I refer them on to Mindfulness Mediation (MM) groups such as Open Ground. Dialectical Behavioral Therapy Groups are another referral source. There is no happiness trap.
Being part of a group promotes well being and support
Most clients are isolated and a joining group is prosocial and they can acquire those skills there.
So why don’t I use MM today?
It has been superseded in my practice through my training and client field proven experience. In my heart I am a therapist. And certainly mindfulness is great way to be grounded and in the present moment. Sadly it does not deal with the origins of a client’s distress. It may offer be a band-aid of relief helping them avoid feelings. Possibly limiting or even halting therapy progress.
I now use Resource Therapy as it addresses the cause of underlying issues of our client’s issues at the source. When you have dealt with the origin of the fear or rejection they naturally disappear.
Stress and panic attacks are treatable.
Leaving no need for self-soothing behaviours for clients. Panic attacks are a thing of the past; self-defeating behaviours no longer occur, relationships internally and externally improve with clients report leaving sessions lighter.
Clients are not stuck with explaining the origins of the their problems talking around the issues with no progress. Resource Therapy’s powerful actions provide the opportunity for rapid shifts. When you work with a Resource Therapist, you are going through a process that connects you to your feelings, thoughts, emotions and reactions that are at the source of why you sought help in the first place.
Resource Therapy works in the Here and Now.
At the heart of my practice is a wish to be of service to others. I definitely gain from my psychology work. I was only chatting with a client in the debrief after a longstanding issue was resolved. I told the client I get a reward with Resource Therapy’s ability to rapidly deal with long-term issues and entrenched behaviour in the therapy hour. A deep sense of achievement, which comes from assisting someone out of pain into his or her freedom, cannot be underestimated. Therapy isn’t one-way street.
Therapy is for change
We go to counselling to talk about something; something we are not happy with, something others don’t like, or life issues that are confusing or holding us back.
What’s been your light bulb moment for change as a therapist?
With Resource Therapy, there is little talking or probing into a person’s past. All a client needs to present with is a willingness and desire to create change in your own life.
Founding the Resource Therapy Institute of Australia has been the most amazing and exciting growth experience. We continue to offer training, supervision and mentoring for therapists in Resource Therapy.
The joy of learning!
Love to hear your reflections and ideas in the spirit of kindness, comment below.
