What can a psychologist help you with?

These are the main areas of work of psychologists, their ways of helping people.

Despite the fact that it is increasingly common to go to a psychologist, and that the patient profile has become incredibly varied in recent decades, there is still a somewhat limited view of the tasks that psychologists can perform to help people.

The idea that psychological intervention is primarily for people with severe psychiatric illnesses is today completely wrong, even though many people still believe in it. At the end of the day, behind any kind of psychological problem or need there are psychology professionals working to provide treatment and care.

So... what can a psychologist really help you with? Next we will see a summary.

The usefulness of going to a psychologist

Let's start with the basics: what is psychology? It is basically the science that studies behavior and psychological processes, which include the way we think, feel and act. psychological processes, which include the way we think, feel and act.. From this scientific field arises the branch of applied psychology, which uses scientific knowledge to solve the psychological problems of individuals, groups and institutions.

If you notice, so far there has been no mention of the concept of "disease", "pathology" or "disorder". And this is no coincidence: psychologists do not work by simply obeying terms that limit our scope of intervention, but we use these concepts to know what we are talking about when working with certain psychological phenomena, and to differentiate them from the rest. In other words, we distinguish between the pathological and the non-pathological only if it makes sense to do so in a given context, and not because the raison d'être of our work is mental illness: it is not.

There is no clear dividing line that separates what has traditionally been called "insanity" and all the other patterns of behavior. Beyond the areas of work in which each professional specializes, psychologists work with all psychological processes in general, not only with those that can be considered disorders.

You only have to think about what is usually done in couple therapy or school psychology to see clear examples of psychologists helping people who on many occasions have not been diagnosed with any disorder and simply suffer from lack of motivation, difficulties in living with someone, frustration at not having friends, etc.

What can a psychologist help with?

Now that we have seen that psychology is a very broad and challenging area of work, it is easier to understand that psychologists usually intervene in a wide variety of problems. These are the most important areas of work.

1. Mood problems

There are many people who go to a psychologist because they feel sad or emotionally stuck. This often occurs in cases where there is depression or other mood disorders, but in others, there is no identifiable disorder, but simply a person going through a bad time. For example, because of the recent death of a loved one, or because they have been fired from their job.

In all these cases, psychologists work so that our patients learn to maintain habits that keep suffering of this type at bay.

2. Anxiety problems

Anxiety and excessive stress are common problems that can occur at any age.

In some cases, much of what causes this discomfort has to do with genetic predispositions, while in other cases it is mainly due to the fact of having lived stressful situations or being subjected to anxiety-inducing environments (school where there are bullying attacks, very competitive workplaces, etc.). In any case, significant improvement is almost always possible through psychotherapy..

3. After-effects of bullying or traumatic events

The fact of being victims of violence can mark many people. In the sessions with the psychologist, everything necessary is done so that these painful memories stop frightening the people who suffer them.

4. Couple problems

As we have seen, this is another of the areas in which psychologists get involved in order to improve the quality of life of those in a couple relationship.

5. Support for people with existential crisis

There are people who go to the psychologist simply because they do not know what to do with their lives, which can be summarized as a problem of lack of sources of motivation. In the psychologist's office it is easier to find exciting projects and to engage in ways of learning new things. and to engage in ways of learning new skills that allow to enter new paths of personal development.

6. Learning and developmental problems

Both in child and adolescent psychotherapy and in the psychological assistance to children without diagnosed disordersIn both child and adolescent psychotherapy and psychological assistance to children without diagnosed disorders, psychology professionals help them learn to relate to others, to the contents taught at school and to their own emotions and thoughts.

7. Psychological assistance to patients with chronic pathologies

Many psychologists specialize in providing psychological support to patients with pathologies and disorders that are patients with pathologies and disorders that are damaging their quality of life, many of which are severe.many of which are severe. We can highlight, for example, therapists who treat people with psychotic disorders, with dementia or with diseases that have to directly affect the nervous system, such as cancer.

8. Therapy for people with eating disorders

Another of the psychologist's areas of specialization are eating problems, and specifically the support for people with obesity, metabolic disorders or eating disorders (such as anorexia or anorexia). (such as anorexia or bulimia).

Where to find psychological assistance?

Nowadays, psychologists work in a wide variety of contexts, both in companies and in schools and public and private health clinics.

If you are interested in contacting our psychotherapy center in Seville, Cribecca Psicologíayou can find our contact information by clicking here.