Have you ever wondered what the difference between group therapy and private therapy is? Or when the right time to join each is? Or are you just “cut” for one type only? If you are wondering how to choose the right guide, the right group for you or if you are simply unsure whether you need therapy, you’re in the right place.
We did too! If therapy is on your mind like it is on ours, then you will understand we’re bringing forth this article, sharing general aspects of private and group therapy and their role at Avalon’s Ayahuasca retreats in Europe.
Similarities between group and private therapies
Let’s think of private therapy as a 1 to 1 session between the guide and the one who receives the guidance. Couples therapy can also count as private, leading us to think of group therapy as made of 3 or more participants.
Before we jump right into the differences between private and group therapy, let’s have a look at some similarities:
- They are both led by one or more guides.
- They can both present the same content; frame a specific topic in the same manner.
- They both deliver value to the participant/s.
- Both private and group therapy is an act of self-love.
What’s the difference between group therapy and private therapy?
1. Group therapy can be financially more accessible than private therapy.
Our medical insurance rarely covers the support we need nowadays. Until the system meets our needs, we can take the steps we can, even if they are small. There are countless free group therapies and donation-based ones that are great opportunities to initiate a path of well-being right now.
2. Group sessions allows you to be silent, listen, and engage as you wish without being the only star on stage.
Some of us are unfamiliar with taking up space. For someone like that, when asking themselves whether to choose private therapy or group therapy, the former is perfect because private sessions call for taking on the space of an entire room and a whole conversation. Eventually, we will all take ourselves there, but in its due time.
3. Private therapy is the best way to deepen something you have discovered during group sessions.
Beyond the group dynamic, you will one day find a desire to deepen the connection to certain aspects of yourself. That very desire will lead you to choose private over group therapy.
4. Group therapy is a great way to seek out a variety of guides before committing to private therapy with one of them.
It’s a bit like sampling, and we do it throughout various segments of our lives. We date casually before getting engaged. We attend seminars before enrolling in a master’s degree. Why not do the same with therapy?
5. Trust and faith can be regained through group sessions.
Meeting people curious about the same things and needing similar guidance can make one’s heart bloom and open up again.
Heart-driven people tend to close their hearts and withdraw when facing difficulty out of fear of hurting those around them. The reality of loneliness settles in after a while and hardens the walls previously built to protect those outside of them. We’ve seen magic happening during therapy in groups, as everyone’s story sounds so much like yours. The heart softens, and that brings tears from deep inside. One might think, “Oh, I am actually not alone/not crazy/not sick,” and just like that, hope’s back in their life.
Group therapy has the power to reveal how interconnected we all are and how we can help each other.
6. Private therapy offers a higher speed of growth due to reaching a deeper awareness.
With certainty, there will come a time when sharing an experience will feel too slow for your desire to grow and understand. You will be craving for more, for a deeper understanding.
Think of it this way: sharing a pizza is all right if you’re not hungry for it. There’s an appetite Ayahuasca is known to awaken – that for knowing your nature and what connects you with others and the world.
Journeying through one’s depth requires excellent courage from those embarking and complete support (anchored in love) by the team holding the space for the journey.
If you ever felt like “there must be something more out there about life that I can’t see,” this is a journey for you.
Private retreats are not just guidance; they shake one’s very ground to a point where it all makes sense. This retreat not only brings one to the point of freedom but also reintegrates the self into the existing world, which is one of Avalon’s most significant goals. Private therapy is the ultimate gift to yourself.
“Here and now, I offer myself the gift of being personally attended to because I matter because I am willing to understand what makes me, me.”
When is the right time to join each type of therapy? Or are you just “cut” for one type only?
There is no right answer to whether group therapy or private therapy are better than the other. Choose whatever feels more comfortable for you at the time being. Let yourself walk into it.
I doubt any of us are “cut” for just one thing – the question is – how deep are you willing to go? And the answer to this question will come to you in time.
How do I choose the right guide or the right group for me?
Choose a guide that sparks your curiosity and makes you dream of possibility.
It’s essential to identify what you have programmed yourself to respond to. What kind of behavior makes you open up? Is it a gentle one, or a rather shaky one?
You’ll be pulled towards guides that use these tools to take you to further awareness.
I can only hope you’ll choose softness.
Once you’ve chosen a guide, let it help you choose the best group. Based on your needs, they can recommend one group rather than another.
Do I need therapy? Why is it on my mind?
The word “therapy” has been used extensively over time, and just like anything nowadays, we as a society have overgrown the base meaning of it.
The pursuit of well-being became something as natural as breathing, so yes, wanting to learn things about yourself, your relationships, and how the world affects you is totally normal.
And if we call all that therapy, then yes – you need it.
You can release your previous judgments on therapy and allow yourself to join these gatherings out of sheer curiosity and a genuine desire to live your best life.
At Avalon, we use group therapy in our retreats in Barcelona and also offer one-to-one therapy sessions after our retreats.
