Many
people experience psychological distress during their lives. Sometimes this
due to a difficult or traumatic childhood, trauma in later life or the difficulties
and pressures of everyday living.
Psychotherapy involves bringing to consciousness the unconscious aspects of
a person’s problems.
One of the main ways of doing this is to help a client examine their everyday
life and personal interactions, and how these are affected by their inner
(often unconscious) assumptions and responses. Another important way lies
in the analysis of dreams, and the use of creative imagination and visualisation.
As in any form of psychotherapy, it is also important to look at the story
of a person's life, and how this affects their relationship with their sexuality,
partners, work and leisure. In addition to this, for some people, a spiritual
or religious dimension comes into the picture as well.