Group Therapy 

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Time: Evenings, space available. 
Place: Cambie & 8th Ave. Vancouver
Fee: $50 per session.

This Group is for people who suffer from depression, anxiety, relationship difficulties, isolation or low self-esteem, group provides a therapeutic venue for dealing with issues of loss, grief, fear, anger, trust, trauma and difficult life experiences. Through the process you can experience a deeper connection with yourself and others and discover more rewarding ways of living.

  • The small group environment creates a microcosm for learning about how you relate in your life. 
  • Members have a supportive space to reflect and receive feedback about how their patterns of relating are re-enacted in the group. 
  • Group encourages self-responsibility, helps members see themselves more clearly and become more congruent. 
  • Group allows clients to feel less alone with their difficulties, and to contribute to and help others. 
  • Provides an opportunity to see how others cope and to experiment with and rehearse new coping strategies. 
  • Members gain insight into how their unconscious views of the interpersonal world of their childhood affects their perceptions and ways of relating in the present.
  • The climate of trust and genuineness allows members to identify and work through difficult feelings and to explore new ways of responding. 

Janet Oakes - Psychoanalyst,  Psychotherapist & Art Therapist. Since the mid 80's she has been working in private practice, mental health and non-profit agencies, providing group and individual psychotherapy.

Why Group Therapy

During our lifetime we participate in various groups. We are part of a family, a school system, and a workplace, among others. How we fare in each of these group settings builds our character and contributes to our self-image. 

Group therapy offers the unique opportunity to be part of a group that focuses on the growth of its individual participants. If you aren't sure how you affect people, if you feel too easily influenced by others, if you have difficulty pursuing what is important to you, you might consider group therapy. It is a valuable adjunct to individual therapy and offers opportunities to experience mutual support.

Group therapy will enable you to share thoughts and feelings, enhance communication skills, learn of one's impact on others, improve interpersonal skills and self-esteem, and have authentic emotional encounters with others.

I offer psychoanalytic groups dealing with general difficulties in living. If you are concerned that you are not doing your best in relationships or you are not enjoying life as fully as you would like, group therapy treatment may be helpful to you. 

If you are missing a sense of connection or community, you might consider group therapy to identify roadblocks to greater satisfaction. 
In addition, I offer support groups coping with specific issues, such as bereavement, sexual abuse, divorce and separation, drug and alcohol addiction, career issues, and life transitions.

What the Program Involves

Groups are composed of approximately eight people who work together to identify and resolve barriers to achieving fulfilling personal relationships or life goals. Groups meet once a week for an hour and a quarter. A weekly fee per meeting is required of all members. An initial intake interview to discuss membership is the first step. 

What factors lie at the core of the group's power as an agent of change? Although many theorists have discussed this question, Yalom's curative factors model argues that effective groups possess certain common characteristics. By providing opportunities to engage in social comparison and mutual support, they instill a sense of hope and convince members of the universality of their problems. 

Groups also facilitate interpersonal learning, including guidance (direct instruction), feedback, identification with others within the group, and increased self-knowledge Groups, when cohesive, also provide members with the social support they need to overcome the negative effects of stress, and they even satisfy members' needs for interpersonal intimacy (including catharsis, existential factors, and recapitulation of the primary family).