Self-Help

A primary counseling and consulting technique used by Dr. Haddock is called, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, which places much emphasis on what you think and believe.  This particular approach to helping is very compatible with self-help techniques.  Therefore, Dr. Haddock encourages his clients to engage in a number of self-help activities tailored to helping develop new skills and maintaining them.  Listed below are some examples of self-help methods you might use when working with Dr Haddock:

1)   Self-help groups, such as Alcoholics Anonymous and other 12-step groups adapted to specific problem areas have enjoyed great popularity in the United States, especially in the past 15 years.  The moral inventories and spiritual aspects of 12-step groups provide a useful program for internalizing values through actual discovery of spiritual principles and are important in maintaining positive, healthy behaviors.

2)   Self-help brochures, pamphlets, tapes, books, and articles are widely accepted by professionals and consumers.  They provide concrete products to clients and facilitate delivery of services to larger numbers of people.  Audiocassette and videotapes can be used independently or as an adjunct to treatment.  Self-help manuals and workbooks have been shown as effective as a stand-alone way to benefit from skill building in specific areas, such as self-management.  Called bibliotherapy, therapeutic reading can greatly accelerate the progress of on-line counseling and minimizes the amount of time spent discussing basic foundational concepts.

3)   Journaling (steam of consciousness, dreams, or critical incidents) and therapeutic writing about past events also has a body of research that supports its effectiveness.  Research shows that the benefits are often delayed within a 6-month period, but definitely useful.  This method also provides a way to structure an online session and to capture thoughts and feelings to be processed during the session.

4)   On-line self-help websites provide opportunities for self-assessment, direction to support groups and materials, and generally, provide useful direction and information to facilitate the online counseling process.  Look for some recommended links at the top banner of this website.

5)  Personality assessments, such as the Enneagram and Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, identify habitual patterns of perceiving, deciding, feeling, and behaving that can be an underlying cause of your surface problems.

Therefore, self-help methods are used as a prelude to online counseling and consulting, an adjunct to ongoing services, and as a principal tool in continuing care.  These methods contribute to a process of helping that keeps the sessions focused and solution-oriented.  They also help contribute to the need for fewer sessions. 

Remember, Dr. Haddock has over 20 years experience in using these methods and will custom tailor these methods to your specific issues and goals.