As the fundamental principles of psychotherapy have been discovered and developed, methods have emerged that combine the most important and effective elements of the classical schools.
Thus, in the late 20th century, the Russian psychologist Nikolai Linde developed the new method of EIT.. This method combines the depth of the analytical approach, the ease of metaphorical work and the effectiveness of short-term effective therapy. In 2012, EIT was recognised as a new scientific and practical school, and has since established itself amongst the recognised therapeutic fields.
What is emotional imagery psycotherapy?
At the clinic, we take the view that all problems have an emotional basis. Negative emotions that a person experiences create tension in the psyche, which leads to undesirable behaviour and sometimes even bodily symptoms. The task of the psychologist is to find the cause of these emotions and eliminate them.
How does emotional imagery psycotherapy work?
Spontaneous images
An excellent feature unique to EIT is that the psychotherapist and the client work with spontaneous images related to the client’s emotional state. It is through this imagery that the problem is analysed, its cause found and then resolved.
Initial conflict
In the process, the therapist finds the initial conflict – the discrepancy between desire and reality – that led to the symptoms, and guides the client towards a solution.
Why is emotional imagery psycotherapy gaining popularity so quickly?
Feedback from clients and professionals alike suggests that it is probably the best psychotherapy method that helps to get rid of any emotion-based problems. It also takes far less time than many other methods to get rid of the problem.
EIT allows you to quickly find the cause of discomfort, to see what holds a person captive to negative emotions, and to break this bond.
Working together, client and psychotherapist journey into the depths of the subconscious mind where the primary conflict resides. When the source of the unpleasantness is identified, the therapist helps the client to get rid of the cause, reassess past life experiences, break away from destructive beliefs, and gain confidence and strength.
These great positive changes in personality help the client to solve the current problem and change their life for the better.
How emotional imagery psycotherapy works
Emotional imagery therapy is unique in that it is based on a structured process of creating then testing a therapeutic hypothesis.
1. Creation
The therapist uses spontaneous images from the client to create the hypothesis. These images are based on an existing problem and are therefore indicative of a chronic emotional condition that needs to be worked on.
2. Fine-tunning
Once created, the hypothesis is refined and narrowed – from the general to the particular, and from the stereotypical to the individual.
3. Testing
During each stage of the work, the hypothesis is continually tested. If it is confirmed, a transformation takes place, and if not, a step back is taken to investigate and refine the hypothesis further.
4. Transformation
Through a change of imagery, emotions and beliefs are changed. The work is done on two levels: externally, with the image itself, and internally, with the client’s psychological state. It is at this stage that the necessary changes in the emotional background and the attachment of the new image to the body (the so-called somatisation) take place.
Since the body is able to remember the emotional states experienced, the connection to the new emotional image helps the client to better understand their new condition and accept the changes that have taken place.
5. Results
Sometimes the client’s condition changes very quickly, and sometimes it takes several sessions, depending on the extent of the problem. In all cases, the effectiveness of the therapy is demonstrated by real changes in the client’s health, behaviour and life.
Of course, for psycotherapy to be successful, it is above all necessary that the therapist has high qualifications and extensive experience of analytical work. Our clinic employs just such specialists.
Emotional imagery
therapy: effectiveness
Why is Emotion Imagery Therapy so effective?
Depth
The psychoanalytic theory underlying the method allows us to work with the deepest causes of problems, not just its symptoms. The result is that the problem is not alleviated for a while, but is completely removed from the client’s life.
Accuracy
Despite their apparent simplicity and non-seriousness, the images carry the most precise information about the client’s experiences. They can be standard (archetypal) or individual, or a combination of both. An experienced therapist easily deciphers the images and interprets them for the client to help him or her with the transformation.
Ease of implementation
Working through imagery helps to bypass the client’s defences and innate resistance. This can be an obstacle when working directly with traumatic or difficult memories (as in other methods), but in EIT this problem is minimal.
Transformational speed
As the image is a glimpse of the problem in the client’s psyche, working with it triggers a biofeedback loop – the emotion behind the image changes, and with it, the problem goes away.
Would emotional imagery
therapy work for you?
Yes, it almost certainly will.
We will use your feelings, associations, body sensations and imagination in this therapy. You are not required to have any special abilities like enhanced memory or the ability to go into a trance.
Anyone who has ever found their car in a multi-storey car park – which requires a combination of memory and imagination – is able to benefit from EIT.
This therapy will have little effect on serious mental illness, psychotic, borderline conditions and personality disorders – due to the fact that the imagery will follow the logic of the mental illness rather than the problem.
If you are ready to experience EIT for yourself, make an appointment for a private psychotherapy consultation in London or online with the specialists at our clinic.
Practitioners
Katerina Furman
Valerie Robins
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