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Q: What Psychotherapeutic Techniques does Dr. Farmer utilize?
Dr. Steven Farmer’s diverse background in psychotherapy allows him to utilize a number of psychotherapeutic techniques in the creation of a highly individualized therapeutic program for each client.
Psychotherapy is a descriptive term that encompasses a number of tools and approaches in a therapeutic relationship. The primary goal is to help clients relieve their suffering, whether in the form of stress, anxiety, depression, grief, or addiction, which are often “symptoms” that mask underlying, unhealed wounds.
The following list offers an in-depth look at the various psychotherapeutic techniques that Dr. Farmer specializes in:
Somatic Therapy
This body-centered approach gently guides the client to consciously discover the connections between various adaptive behaviors that were once required in order to survive various childhood and adult traumas, yet have become dysfunctional in adulthood. The process is one of slowly untangling the body’s habitual patterns so that the client gains a greater resilience and choice in managing their lives.
Hypnotherapy
This technique involves working with the client in a trance state that untaps the powers of the subconscious mind, allowing them to focus on utilizing their natural resources to instill change within themselves. In movies and mainstream media, there is a common misconception that hypnosis will render the client unconscious, asleep, or out of control of themselves. Professionally performed hypnotherapy keeps the client in control, with the client actively hearing the therapist’s suggestions.
EMDR Therapy
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) Therapy is beneficial in relieving psychological stress, and can be helpful to clients suffering from PTSD or another form of trauma. It involves reliving traumatic experiences in brief doses while the doctor directs your eye movements. EMDR Therapy typically occurs in eight phases:
- History and treatment planning
- Preparation, to establish trust and explain the treatment in detail
- Assessment, to establish negative feelings and identify positive replacements
- Desensitization, which includes the eye movement technique
- Installation, to strengthen positive replacements
- Body scan, to see if the client is now able to bring up memories of trauma without experiencing negative feelings that are no longer relevant, or if reprocessing is necessary
- Closure, which occurs at the end of every session
- Reevaluation, which occurs at the beginning of every subsequent session
EFT Therapy
Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) helps clients realize their own emotions, thereby helping build their identity. This therapy relies on the notion that emotions are key to making decisions, and that avoiding them can cause harm. It is suitable for individuals, couples, or families looking to strengthen emotional bonds and attachment. There are typically three stages of EFT:
- De-escalate the client(s)’s negative cycle of interactions, and help them see and understand what is happening in their relationship
- Restructure interactions, where there is a healthy discussion amongst the client(s) about their fears in the relationship, using language that doesn’t push the other(s) away
- Consolidation occurs, which is the discovery of how the client(s) first got into negative patterns, and the realization of how they were able to change those patterns in the second phase
In addition to clinical psychotherapeutic techniques, Dr. Farmer specializes in an array of shamanic healing therapies, such as soul retrieval, power animal retrieval, shamanic extraction, and conscious connected breathing. This “spirits-meets-science” approach that Dr. Farmer practices allows him to help his clients in the most effective way possible.
To get started on your healing journey, schedule your 60 or 90-minute therapeutic counseling session here, or inquire about a personal intensive here.
