Group therapy is a form of psychotherapy that involves one or more therapists working with a group of individuals who are seeking help for similar issues or coping from similar difficulties. The group therapy format has gained a lot of attention, as it offers many advantages that the individual therapy format doesn’t account for.

Group therapies differ in terms of the level of interaction, type, and inputs from the group leader or therapist. Some of them aim at education and improving knowledge about mental health and mental illness, others aim at skill-building, and behavior modification through the group meetings. Skill-building groups may work on emotional regulation, interpersonal skills building, assertiveness training, substance abuse treatment, etc.

There are group therapies that also simply offer a reflective space for the audience and the members bond over the shared struggles as they feel “not alone” in them. This may often be the case for group therapy for grief, for caregivers of individuals suffering with serious illnesses, and trauma survivors.

The number of members in a group therapy format can vary from 5-15 and the frequency of the groups could be between 1-2 times a week.