A Theory in Progress
Every theory begins with just a thought. One thought can change the course of history and the lives of many. Aristotle had a thought when he saw the shadow cast by the earth upon the moon. This thought led to the theory that the world is round, which people know to be true. There is no brilliance in coming up with a theory, only a thought that leads to a larger idea, which soon becomes a theory. Sigmund Freud's theories about the unconscious mind led him to what he calls psychoanalysis. In layman's terms, psychoanalysis is little more than a patient sitting in a room with another person discussing the issues that bother him or her in his or her life. When thinking about this on a broader scale, psychoanalysis is much more. Psychoanalysis with a well educated and trained individual can open the eyes to see deeper into the patients psyche. When the psychoanalyst gives the patient the right tools, he or she can help the patient overcome the obstacles that hold him or her hostage.
Thought to Theory
Some of the brightest minds in history made their theory into scientific data that people of all ages learn from. Each one; forming an idea in their mind and putting their idea into practice, and then ultimately becoming a theory. Theories are always changing and making better the ideas of the past. Not one person can truly know the human mind to its fullest, but with practice and theory people can learn more about the mind and obtain a better understanding of how the mind works.
Testing the theory by putting it into practice is an important step to ensure the validity of the theory. Proving a theory as valid takes time and much research before the theory becomes common practice. There is a reason behind every theory. For example: a child is doing poorly in school. The teacher must ask him or herself why the child is struggling to make assignments and good grades. The teacher then asks him or herself a plethora of questions regarding the child and begins to examine different times the child stated that he or she does not want to go home. The child has come to school with various bruises at different times. The teacher can logically conclude that the child is having difficulties at home, therefore affecting his or her grades at school. The teacher can determine that the child is suffering at school because of circumstances with either his or her parents or with siblings. The process of figuring out the child's difficulties at school leads the teacher to a theory. The theory becomes a search for answers to help the child with his or her circumstances.
Personal Theory
No two people think the same way. Each person is unique, and it is the uniqueness of each individual and the difference in their minds that should be addressed when dealing with those people’s feelings, thoughts, actions, behaviors, and even his or her psychological well-being. The foundation for healing can be found in the works of some of history's advanced writers and educators, such as Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung, and Erik Erikson. To say that any of these men have every answer would be futile, for the world is ever-changing and subsequently the ideas and concepts about the human mind change. Each therapist has his or her own beliefs and ideas about how to deal with his or her patients issues and no one way is the correct way. What may work for Jane Doe may not work for John Doe. Each person is unique and each has a unique set of circumstances that make him or her who he or she is. No two people share the same past and even if they do, they experience it differently.
The important thing to remember is that people experience events differently, it is important that their therapy is as unique as those circumstances. The therapy the clinician chooses may come from a variety of different theories, but each will be unique to the individual and his or her particular circumstances.
Person-centered therapy is an excellent starting point for anyone who wants to build his or her own personal model of helping others. Carl Rogers is the developer of person-centered therapy also known as client-centered therapy. "Rogers believed that the therapeutic relationship could lead to insights and lasting changes in a client" (Cherry, 2012, para. 5). The therapist, in client-centered therapy focuses on the client and allows the client to lead the direction of each session. Client-centered therapy is non-directive; meaning the therapist allows the client to take the lead. No matter how the therapist chooses to engage the client, he or she does lead the client to some extent. As the therapist grows and learns new techniques, he or she builds his or her own personal model of helping. This may take some time to accomplish. What works for one client will not always work for another, but the foundation of the therapy is set in stone.
My Theory of Helping
I base my theory on the client-centered approach. As stated previously, each person is unique and has a unique set of circumstances. People behave differently, speak differently, and think differently. Because of this, the therapy should be unique to the individual. My theory also includes elements from several theories including Gestalt Theory, Cognitive-Behavior Therapy, Psychodynamic Therapy, Rational-Emotive Therapy, and Existential Theory.
The foundation of my theory is person or client-centered, focusing on the client and allowing them to have some control on how his or her therapy moves forward. On the other hand, I, as a therapist, will nudge the client toward healing through techniques derived from the different theories.
Adlerian Theory
By understanding the birthing order of the client, I am able to draw conclusions to the behavior the client exhibits. This will give me some insights into why the client has specific traits and behaviors. This element comes from the Adlerian Theory. The Adlerian theory takes into account the client's order of birth, life-style, social interests, and personality pertaining to superiority and inferiority. Goals of Adlerian theory are to increase the client's social interest, increase problem-solving skills, and change negative behaviors to positive. Family units often assign roles to individuals within the family unit. The assignment of roles is normally given to the individual relating to the order of their birth. For example, the firstborn normally has more responsibility than his or her siblings and takes on a leadership role within the family unit.
Gestalt Therapy
Gestalt therapy focuses on what is happening in the client's life now, rather than the past. Gestalt therapy helps the client become aware of their feelings, sensations, and emotions. This therapy also helps the client understand what is contradicting those feelings and emotions (Secret, 2008). By understanding where the emotions and feelings stem from, the client can make the appropriate changes to his or her thinking to change those negative feelings to positive, affirming feelings.

Rational-Emotive Therapy
In rational-emotive behavior therapy, the belief is events in people's lives do not upset them, it is the beliefs they have that cause them to become anxious, angry, or depressed. Epictetus was the first to articulate that people's beliefs are what upset them. Nearly 2000 years ago, Epictetus stated, "Men are disturbed not by events, but by the views which they take of them."
The goal of rational-emotive behavior therapy is to lead the client toward happiness no matter if he or she is alone or with other people, to be compatible with others, well-informed, well educated, and enjoy life. This is what most men and women want for themselves. There are many obstacles that may stand in the way of finding happiness. It is the client's response to those obstacles that determine whether or not they obtain his or her goals. The response may be healthy or unhealthy, helpful or not.
Rational-emotive behavior therapy hypothesizes that the way in which people respond to their goals being blocked is because of their beliefs. The development of the ABC formula, by Dr. Albert Ellis, teaches people how their beliefs cause the emotional and behavioral responses (Ross, 2006). The ABC model starts with something happening in the client’s life, the client having a belief about the circumstances, and the client having an emotional reaction to the beliefs, not the circumstances.
One example of the ABC model is:
A. The client lost their job because of transportation issues.
B. The client believes this is not fair.
C. The client has an emotional reaction, anger, to the belief.
The ABC model shows that A does not cause C. It is B that causes C. The client in the example loses his or her job; but, it is not the loss of the job that makes him or her angry, it is his or her belief about losing the job that angers the client. By re-shaping the clients beliefs, as a therapist, I can show the client where the anger comes from, allowing them to deal with negative belief of the circumstances.
Cognitive-Behavior Therapy
Cognitive-Behavior Therapy is normally short-term therapy that lasts no more than 20 sessions. This type of therapy focuses on the present situation and not the past. Cognitive-behavior therapy is most commonly used with children, who are experiencing anxiety, problems with social interactions, and depression. This therapy focuses on changing the client's negative thoughts about self, life, and others. Cognitive-behavior therapy also attacks the self-defeating thoughts, such as all-or-nothing thinking, over-generalizing, and minimizing or maximizing the importance of a particular event. The therapy makes the client aware of these negative thought patterns and helps them change these thoughts to positive through instruction and giving the client a chance to practice new responses and attitudes through modeling.
Psychodynamic Therapy
Psychodynamic therapy is usually longer term than many other therapies and focuses on past events. The client can re-enact past events during role-play, making the client-therapist relationship a top priority. The therapist can help the client relate to people and circumstances with a new way of thinking. By dealing with the past in someone's life, they can move forward and resolve those negative thought patterns about themselves that have held them captive.
Reason for Model
My reasons for choosing these theories are to incorporate into my personal model of helping stem from my past. My biological mother abandoned three children when I was two years old. She left us in a vehicle, parked on the side of the road. The officer who found us said we were there for at least three days. The family who adopted me, never made me feel like a part of their family. Treated as an outcast, my mother told me when I was 19 or 20 that I was the only mistake she ever made. Because of this, my legacy was to think that I am not important and should never have been born. I have since dealt with the pain and have learned to deal with hurt in a positive way. Therapy helped me overcome much of the negativity that I dealt with.
There are many facets to ones personality and mind. I want to be able to touch upon all areas of concern for others therefore they may be able to move forward and live for a future and not experience their life from the rearview mirror perspective. Each person I come into contact with experiences life and circumstances uniquely and I want to be able to help them no matter what those circumstances may be.
With this theory, I will be able to help those who are experiencing anxiety, depression, eating disorders, bipolar, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and numerous other issues. This theory can help anyone, at any age with issues they are experiencing. Although my main focus is on issues within family units and children, I want to be able to help anyone who is in need of changing his or her thoughts into positive ones. With a mesh of the different elements in each theory above, I am able to help a diverse group of people.
Although the foundation of my personal method of helping is found in the person or client-centered therapy, I will use elements from each of the following, Adlerian theory, cognitive-behavioral therapy, rational-emotive therapy, psychodynamic, and Gestalt theory. The combination gives me the opportunity to help an array of situations and issues that people face. Tori Amos once stated, "Some people are afraid of what they might find if they try to analyze themselves too much, but you have to crawl into your wounds to discover where your fears are. Once the bleeding starts, the cleansing can begin." Thus we have the therapist to help us find our way through the wounds to find happiness within and out. References
Cherry, K. (2012). Client-centered therapy: Carl Rogers non-directive approach to therapy. Retrieved July 2012, from About: http://psychology.about.com/od/typesofpsychotherapy/a/client-centered-therapy.htm
Ross, W. (2006). What is rebt? Retrieved July 2012, from REBT network: http://www.rebtnetwork.org/whatis.html
Secret, A. H. (2008). Gestalt therapy explained. Retrieved July 2012, from Hubpages: http://allhealthsecret.hubpages.com/hub/Gestalt-Therapy-Explained