What happens in a Women’s Relationship Support Group?
Group Therapy Overview - Why should I consider group therapy?
If you haven’t tried group therapy yet, you may consider adding it to your mental health care routine. Group therapy has a lot of benefits:
If you’ve never tried therapy before and are skeptical, it can be a great, soft introduction to therapy.
It can also be a great way to supplement your individual therapy.
It can even help you to take the next step and cut back on your individual therapy as you test the waters of the newfound skills and healing work you’ve done.
For some people, it is even an alternative to individual therapy, if what you’re working on doesn’t require the intensity of one to one therapy.
It can be a great way to get targeted or specialized care for a specific issue or concern.
It may be covered by your insurance benefits, and if not, is usually more affordable for most budgets.
What are Support Groups
There are many different types of group therapy that are offered. One of the easiest to access, and least intimidating types is a support group. Support groups may be as simple as a group of people getting together to talk about a specific topic that they all have in common. Some examples of support groups are: grief support group, parenting support group, Alcoholics Anonymous, and more.
What is a Women’s Relationship Support Group
My women’s relationship support group is focused on practicing building healthy relationships in a safe and inclusive environment. Most people come for a few different reasons:
Some are having relationship challenges and want to learn how to better communicate in those relationships.
Some find that they don’t have many, or any, close relationships and want to practice getting to know others and building trust and communication to make new friendships.
Some aren’t sure if their relationships will last, and are seeking resources and support to help make that decision to stay or go.
Some are noticing that their relationships with parents or siblings has impacted how they relate to others in the world, and are wanting to heal from those early or continuing wounded relationships, and learn to create healthy boundaries.
Whether you are seeking a women’s relationship support group to learn how to find new friends or a partner, or create better relationships with those already in your life, you are welcome in this women’s relationship group.
Topics
There are a lot of topics that come up for discussion in groups. Here are just a few that we’ve covered recently.
Trust and Betrayal
Boundaries
Effective Communication
Self-esteem and Self Confidence
Loneliness
Values & Identity
Self Protection & Intimacy
Topics are chosen by the group facilitator, a licensed mental health counselor, who uses evidence-based practices, tools, and techniques to guide discussions based on what is showing up for individual group participants in their lives.
What does a typical group meeting look like?
It can be scary to join a new group. You may find yourself wondering, what will it look like? Who will be there? Will I be expected to speak and share? How safe is it to share my personal experiences with a group of people I don’t know? What if I hate it? The list of questions that can talk you out of trying group therapy is long and intimidating, but you don’t have to be scared. You won’t be forced to share, and you can choose how much you participate in the group.
Groups start with an introduction
Groups typically start with an ice breaker, a check in, and an opportunity to let the group know if there is something you would like to bring to the group for support. This part of the group is intended to build trust and practice communication with each other.
Groups focus on giving and receiving support
After each member has an opportunity to participate in the introduction, the group focuses on any participants who have requested time to share and seek support from the group. Members are invited to listen, share experiences, and offer support to each other. This portion usually takes up most of the group time and is intended to deepen relationships with each other in group, learn from each other, and share our own stories to build intimacy and practice support seeking behaviors that you may eventually carry out into your interpersonal relationships in your life.
Groups offer space for learning and practice
Sometimes it can feel awkward to share, or group members aren’t quite feeling comfortable enough with each other to share yet. The group facilitator comes prepared with a topic and discussion questions to provide a theme for group discussions to help spark conversation and sharing, while also providing psychoeducation about topics that are important for building healthy relationships. Members are invited to use these discussion points as opportunities to share their thoughts and experiences for the benefit of themselves and the group.
Group facilitators help keep the group flowing and focused
The facilitator of the group is a licensed mental health counselor. Their role is to model how group members may choose to talk with each other when providing support. They also keep the group flowing and focused. They focus on the individual goals of each group members to provide support in reaching individual goals. They also document important questions and topics that arise, and any progress or challenges members may have with their goals and group interactions.
What can you hope to get out of group therapy in a women’s support group?
Everyone’s reasons for going to group therapy are different, and so the outcomes will be too. Some possible outcomes include:
being able to communicate more effectively with people you are in relationship in with
being able to build new relationships, maintain current relationships, and let go of unhealthy relationships that you cannot change
learning how to build and maintain trust, and how to overcome betrayal
learn what healthy boundaries are and how to use them effectively
build your self confidence and self esteem
understand how loneliness impacts your relationships and self esteem
identify the beliefs and values you have and how they impact your relationships
understand and learn how self protection and intimacy impact your relationships and how to use them for healthy relationships
and more
How do I join a women’s support group?
Search and Ask
The first thing you need to do if you want to join a women’s support group is to find one to attend. A quick Google search may help you locate groups in your area, or online groups you can attend. You may also ask friends or family, your doctor, your therapist, or other trusted professionals for a recommendation or referral. Finally you can look through therapist directories like Psychology Today, Therapy Den, or others to find the group you are looking for.
Contact Group Facilitator
After you have found a few options for the group you are interested in, it’s time to give the facilitator a call to set up an initial appointment. This appointment will usually be just 10 minutes or so and is intended to make sure you have a chance to ask any questions about the group, share your goals for the group, and get more information about the group from the facilitator.
Meet for Brief Intake
Prior to attending the group the facilitator may set up a one to one intake so you are prepared to join the group. You will fill out some initial consent forms and be provided with group norms (the “rules” of the group) and information about where and when to attend the group. You will set a goal for the group.
Attend Group Regularly
Once this is all done you are welcome to start attending the group. You are encouraged to attend regularly to get the most benefit from the experience and as a commitment to yourself and other group members who are seeking support.
