Does Psychotherapy Have A Biological Basis?

Discussion: Does Psychotherapy Have A Biological Basis?

Assignment: Discussion: Does Psychotherapy Have A Biological Basis?

Mental health processes and disorders originate from mechanisms within the brain. There has been the question within the psychiatric field as to whether plastic changes in the brain that can occur with the use of pharmacological interventions for mental health disorders could also occur with the use of psychotherapy. Psychotherapy is extremely beneficial in treating several mental health issues (Laureate Education, 2016).There is compounding evidence that psychotherapy does have a biological basis and can have a positive impact in brain recovery from the stress response. According to Wheeler (2014), psychotherapy mediates the reintegration and connection of neural networks that have become maladaptively linked due to adverse life events facilitating healing of the brain. Psychotherapy has been found to be an effective treatment method for a variety of mental health disorders such as anxiety, major depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder. According to Fournier (2014), activity in regions associated with negative emotion, emotion regulation, fear, and reward are associated with response to psychotherapy, and psychotherapy appears to alter the functioning of these regions.

While proven to be an effective treatment modality for mental health disorders, there are factors such as culture, religion, and socioeconomic background that can affect the client and their perspective on the use of psychotherapy. Psychotherapy within itself can bring conflicting emotions for the client and the clinician must be aware of how religion, culture, and socioeconomics can alter how the client perceives psychotherapy and its efficacy in their treatment. According to Wheeler (2014), the powerful influence of culture permeates all dimensions of out life in a way that is often unconscious. For example, if a client comes from a culture where emotions are not to be discussed or if one discusses there past traumas or fears then the client could be resistant to the role of psychotherapy in their treatment plan. The clinician must be aware of the importance of culture in medical or psychological treatments. Religion also plays an instrumental role in how psychotherapy will be perceived by a client. Many clients may come from a religious background where one only speaks of negative emotions with someone from their clergy or a religious figure. According to Kim, Chen & Brachfeld (2018), religion and spirituality are important issues to consider and address in psychotherapy. Communication could become stagnant if the clinician is not aware of the role religion plays in the psychotherapy framework. Socioeconomic background can also be a variable in one‘s perspective of the value of psychotherapy. Certain traumatic events that a person can suffer throughout their lifetime can be directly correlated to socioeconomic standing. For example, poverty can be associated with depression, anxiety, substance abuse, and mood disorders. Patients from this type of background can experience barriers in both seeking and receiving mental health services. According to Bernal et al. (2017), vulnerable populations such as those low in social status face additional barriers to mental health treatment and experience unique barriers to receiving optimal care.