Anyone had Group Therapy?

[Ivyy]

I've been seeing a counsellor privately once a month for the last year. I've recently been "offered" a place in group therapy for ptsd that the counsellor is setting up. I was quite interested at first as I felt connecting with others (they're all other women who have ptsd and see this counsellor) who have experienced similar things might be helpful.

I've been given a contract today by my counsellor and asked to read and sign it before she arranges a date for the first group session. Tbh I find it very strict and it's put me off joining the group, some of the rules in the contract are:

1. Attendance

Group therapy works best when members are reliably and consistently present. When one member is gone, it affects the entire group. By joining this group, members agree to come weekly unless there is an emergency or serious illness. For group therapy to be effective, members must make attendance a priority.

1. Fees/Billing

Members are billed for any absences, except in the case of a serious emergency or hospitalisation.

1. Termination

Group members agree to stay in the group until they have achieved their original goals, or until they have reached a point in therapy where change and growth are no longer possible.

Other rules are about confidentiality, not socialising outside the group and being an open and equal participant, those I'm fine with.

I'm not sure the always attending and still paying is going to be possible for me as I have two chronic conditions and I'm often unwell with them. The rule about leaving the group also feels a bit overwhelming as theoretically I could still be made to stay in the group even if I want to leave, and then also be charged for not attending? Likewise if others want to leave the group for some reason, or someone feels they've "reached their goals" but others haven't?

Can I have some opinions please, is this standard for group therapy? Would you sign the contract?

I can't see how they would make you stay if you did want to leave. Could you talk to your therapist about your concerns with your illness and attendance? I'd imagine the aim is just to get people going consistently rather than canceling at the slightest thing , not to deter people with other illnesses joining the group. A lot of the benefit is the relationships you build with others in the group so it makes sense they would want to encourage people to consistently attend so you all get to know each other.

For what its worth, I had group therapy and it hugely helped me. I hated the idea and didn't have much choice about starting, but wound up finding it so helpful. Being able to discuss what you're going through with other people going through the same thing made a big difference. Its a different kind of support than that a therapist alone is able to give you. Would recommend giving it a go if you can get comfortable with the ts&cs.

@Hakunamatata91 Yes I'd really like to try it as there's something very comforting about the idea of talking to others who have had similar experiences. You might be right about the wording trying to deter absences so that people don't miss group sessions for very minor reasons.

I should indeed speak to my therapist about my health issues possibly impacting my attendance at times, hopefully we can
compromise on something. It's good to know group therapy helped you, it's not something I've ever considered until I was offered this place, definitely want to try it though if we can iron out my worries about the attendance and people being able to leave the group! Did you have to sign a similar contract?

I did have to agree to a set of rules, most of which were about confidentiality and boundaries about what was to be discussed. Mine was when I was in hospital though, so the rules that are worrying you wouldn't have made sense in that setting.

I think it sounds fairly standard for therapy, but I would definitely discuss those points of concern with your therapist. I think it's a good idea to ask about clarification on what reaching a goal looks like as well. Good luck if you decide to go for it OP, there is something unique about group Therapy definitely.

I would concur that group therapy is amazing but why pay when free groups exist? Tell me the first two letters of your postcode and I will signpost for you

I have had to agree to similar rules - and other's have too, however, this is on the NHS and they are a little more flexible in terms of actually following the rules and there's no payments. Ie. some people have come back to the group after missing several months with the leader's discretion.

Maybe you can ask if there's a cooling off period for the contract so you can see how it goes for a few weeks? I would also discuss the health conditions too, but i suspect that the payment part is because they need their regular income and don't want to be losing too much due to people not turning up with out good reason.