Solution-Focused Therapy in Langley
Solution-Focused Therapy in Langley
Solution-Focused Therapy from my office in Walnut Grove, with virtual appointments available throughout British Columbia.
What Is Solution-Focused Therapy?
Solution-Focused Therapy is a future-oriented, goal-directed approach to counselling that shifts the focus away from the past and toward planning for tomorrow. I ask you to imagine the future you want, with less of what is causing difficulty and more of what is working well in your life. From there, we create a vision of that future and begin planning how to move toward it.
Solution-Focused Therapy places particular emphasis on the strengths you already bring with you and how those strengths can be leveraged. I start from the assumption that you have resources, abilities and experiences that can help you solve your own problems. Together, we identify those resources and look at how you can use them more deliberately.
We can also focus on the skills you would need to become the best version of yourself. Together, we identify which of those skills you already possess, which need to be strengthened and which you may need to acquire as you work toward the future you want.
Solution-Focused Therapy can be an excellent complement to Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT). Where those modalities can help us identify and change patterns that contribute to a problem, Solution-Focused Therapy shifts our attention toward what you want instead. Rather than focusing only on solving the problem, we work toward creating the solution.
Moving Toward the Future You Want
ARE NOW
IS WORKING BUILD ON YOUR
STRENGTHS RECOGNIZE
PROGRESS
YOU WANT
If something works, do more of it. If it doesn't, change it.
How Solution-Focused Therapy Works
Everyone is different. We have different preferences, ways of being, communication styles and approaches to conflict. What works for one person may not work for another. Because of this, there is no generic guide to success. I cannot teach you to boldly lead into conflict when you would rather handle things gently and expect that approach to work for you. Instead, I look at who you are, the whole of you and how you prefer to interact with the world.
Together, we look at the parts of your life that are already working and examine what makes them work. From there, we create a plan for applying those strengths and effective strategies to other areas of your life.
For example, imagine you are married and handle conflict effectively at home, but at work you struggle to get your point across in the same way. We would look at what is different about those situations, what allows you to communicate effectively at home and how the strengths and skills you already possess could be applied to the challenges you are experiencing at work.
While the application can be complex, the underlying principle is simple: if something works, do more of it. If it doesn't, change it.
What Skills Does Solution-Focused Therapy Teach?
Solution-Focused Therapy helps you develop a practical way of approaching change. The focus is on turning a desired future into specific changes you can recognize and work toward.
Recognizing What Is Already Working
Recognizing what is already working means breaking situations into individual moments and examining the parts that went well. Instead of looking only at the overall outcome, we look at what happened along the way. What did you do that helped? What skills did you use? How did you communicate, respond or make a decision that moved the situation in the right direction? This helps us identify the specific things you contributed to a successful outcome rather than treating success as something that simply happened.
Once we understand what worked and why, we can look for ways to repeat those behaviours, use those skills more deliberately or apply them to other situations where you are having difficulty.
Defining the Future You Want
I work with you to describe the future you want in concrete terms. If you want less conflict, for example, what would a better interaction actually look like? What would you do differently? How would the other person respond? What would you notice in your everyday life?
When you can see what you want, you can begin identifying the changes required to move toward it.
Recognizing Progress
Recognizing progress means checking back in to review situations and identify the small victories along the way. Change does not always mean that a situation went perfectly. Sometimes progress is recognizing that something was difficult, but you handled it well. You communicated more clearly, stayed calmer, made a different choice or used a skill you have been working to develop.
Together, we look at what changed and what you did to contribute to that change. Over time, you develop the ability to check in with yourself, recognize when you handled something well and understand which skills helped you do it. This allows you to see progress even when the outcome was imperfect and continue building on what is working.
Building on Your Strengths
Building on your strengths means being honest about where your skills lie and leaning toward them. You may be naturally good at planning, listening, analyzing information, staying calm, communicating directly or finding practical solutions. We identify the abilities that come naturally to you and look at how you can use them to accomplish what you want.
We also identify the skills that will help you move forward and work to develop them. As your existing strengths become more deliberate and your skills expand, you develop more ways to approach challenges, pursue opportunities and create the future you want.
What Can Solution-Focused Therapy Help With?
Solution-Focused Therapy can be used with a range of mental health, emotional, behavioural and relationship concerns. Because the work focuses on identifying goals, recognizing existing resources and building solutions, it can be useful when you want to make a specific change in your life or develop a different way of responding to a problem.
Solution-Focused Therapy has been used with people experiencing depression, anxiety, trauma-related difficulties, substance use disorders, behavioural concerns and relationship or family difficulties. It can also be used with people experiencing stress, workplace challenges and other life difficulties, as well as those pursuing personal development and growth.
You do not need to have a diagnosed mental health condition to benefit from Solution-Focused Therapy. The approach can also be useful when you know something in your life needs to change and want to develop a clearer picture of where you are going and the skills and actions that can help you get there.
In my practice, some of the areas where I may use Solution-Focused Therapy include:
Anxiety
Solution-Focused Therapy helps those experiencing anxiety by shifting some of the work toward the future you want to create and the skills that can help you navigate uncertainty. We identify situations you already handle effectively, examine what you do well in those moments and build on those abilities as you develop greater confidence in your ability to manage anxious situations.
Learn more about Anxiety Counselling →Depression
Solution-Focused Therapy helps those experiencing depression by identifying meaningful changes you would like to see in your life and creating achievable steps toward them. We look for moments when things are working better, recognize the actions and circumstances contributing to those moments and use that information to begin building more of what you want into your life.
Learn more about Depression Counselling →Anger
Solution-Focused Therapy helps those experiencing difficulties with anger by defining how you would like to respond when anger occurs and identifying the skills that can help you get there. We look at situations you have handled well, recognize what you did effectively and build on those skills to create more deliberate ways of responding.
Learn more about Anger Counselling →Addiction
Solution-Focused Therapy helps those experiencing addiction by developing a clear picture of the life and behaviours they want to create and identifying the steps that move them toward it. We look at times when you have successfully managed urges, made different choices or relied on other ways of coping and build on what helped you in those moments.
Learn more about Addiction Counselling →Trauma & Injury
Solution-Focused Therapy helps those affected by trauma or injury by focusing on the life they want to build as they move forward. We identify existing strengths, abilities and successful ways of coping and develop the additional skills that can help you regain confidence, participate more fully in everyday life and work toward the future you want.
Learn more about Trauma & Injury Counselling →Personal Development & Personal Growth
Solution-Focused Therapy helps those pursuing personal development by creating a clear picture of who they want to become and identifying the skills required to get there. We examine the strengths you already possess, identify areas you want to develop and create practical steps that expand what you are capable of doing.
Learn more about Personal Development & Personal Growth →Who Can Benefit From Solution-Focused Therapy?
Solution-Focused Therapy can be adapted to different people, circumstances and counselling goals. I may draw from Solution-Focused Therapy when working with individuals, men, couples and families, people navigating separation or divorce, and clients accessing counselling through an Employee Assistance Program.
The way I use it depends on the person in front of me and what they want to accomplish. The work may involve improving a relationship, communicating more effectively, navigating a change, handling a difficult situation or developing the skills needed to move toward a personal or professional goal.
Is Solution-Focused Therapy Right for Me?
You do not need to decide whether Solution-Focused Therapy is the right type of therapy for you before coming to counselling. Part of my role is to understand what you are experiencing, what you would like to change and which approach may be useful in helping you get there.
For some people, Solution-Focused Therapy may form the primary approach to treatment. For others, I may use elements of it alongside other therapeutic approaches. The treatment starts with the person, not the modality.
Frequently Asked Questions About Solution-Focused Therapy
No. You don’t need to choose a therapeutic approach before coming to counselling. We can discuss what you are experiencing, what you would like to change and whether Solution-Focused Therapy or another approach may be appropriate for your goals.
No it does not ignore your past. Your past can be important in understanding who you are and what has shaped your experiences. Solution-Focused Therapy places its emphasis on where you are now, where you want to go and what can help you move toward that future.
No. You may arrive knowing exactly what you want to change, or you may simply know that something in your life is not working the way you want it to. Part of our work can be developing a clearer picture of what you want and what meaningful change would look like for you.
You don’t need to arrive with a list of things you do well. Understanding what you do well is part of the process. Together we look at situations you have handled effectively, skills you use in different areas of your life and moments when things have worked well. From there, we can identify strengths you can use more deliberately and skills you would like to develop.
The length of counselling depends on what you are working on, your goals and how you respond to treatment. Because the work is goal-directed, we can continue checking our progress against what you want to accomplish and adjust our approach as your needs change.
Yes. Solution-Focused Therapy can work alongside other therapeutic approaches. Depending on what you are working on, I may incorporate it with CBT, DBT, EMDR or other approaches.
Yes. I offer in-person counselling from my office in Walnut Grove, Langley, as well as virtual appointments for clients throughout British Columbia.
Other Therapeutic Approaches
Solution-Focused Therapy is one of several therapeutic approaches I use. The approach we use depends on what brings you to counselling, what you want to accomplish and the type of work that will help you move toward those goals.
I may also draw from:
Solution-Focused Therapy in Langley and Online Across BC
I provide Solution-Focused Therapy from my office in Walnut Grove, Langley, with virtual counselling available to clients throughout British Columbia.
Whether we meet in person or online, our work focuses on understanding where you want to go, recognizing what is already working and developing the skills and actions that can help you move toward the future you want.