Our Services
Group Therapy in Gainesville, Florida
“Being able to feel safe with other people is probably the single most important aspect of mental health; safe connections are fundamental to meaningful and satisfying lives.”
Bessel A. van der Kolk
“We long to belong, and belonging and caring anchors our sense of place in the universe.”
Patricia Churchland
Painting by Cheri Marmarosh
At Wolcott Counseling & Wellness, we love group work!
As we work with you individually or in couple/family work, we might recommend group therapy for some of our clients.
Group therapy has an unmatched power to transform the lives of its participants. Group clients commonly seek improved relationships, better social skills, warmer friendships, and a reduction in anxiety or depressive symptoms — or simply personal growth as a human being navigating life. Group is a powerful adjunct to individual or family/couples work, and often helps clients achieve the best outcomes.
Groups have the power to accelerate personal change and create quantum leaps in relationship improvement. Group therapy unlocks entrenched patterns and unconscious behaviors to open significantly new possibilities for people.
How does group work? Group therapy is a microcosm of real life. As you participate in group, you get authentic feedback about how you’re perceived by others. You learn that the assumptions you make about how others see you are frequently far off base. You learn how to express your feelings honestly, connect with others authentically, and learn how you come across to others. The communication and intimacy and interpersonal skills developed in group provide a level of clarity and safety that group members frequently have never experienced before. The result: improvement in all of your relationships.
Who benefits from group therapy?
Group is a wonderful choice for anyone who wants to improve their relationship with themselves or others. Group is an excellent place to work on interpersonal difficulties, problems making friends, conflict or dissatisfaction in intimate relationships, loneliness, reactivity, and trauma from previous relationships and experiences. Group can help with depression, anxiety, grief, boundaries, codependency, addiction, motivation, procrastination, parenting, caregiving, and work issues.
People who attend group can expect to:
- Learn how to connect with others authentically and honestly
- Improve boundary setting
- Feel more comfortable voicing their thoughts, feelings, opinions
- Receive and give significant support over time
- Laugh and feel connected, while showing up for others.
- Meet others with similar goals, struggles and hopes
- Feel less alone
- Get feedback on how they come across to others
- Challenge their unexamined or unconscious beliefs about themselves
- Feel a sense of belonging and look forward to group session.
All of the Wolcott Counseling & Wellness therapists are highly experienced in group work. Lisa Wolcott is a Certified Group Psychotherapist (CGP), on the editorial board for the International Journal of Group Psychotherapy, and considered an expert in the field of group work. For more information on how group can help you, click here.
Available Groups in Wolcott Counseling in Gainesville, FL
At Wolcott Counseling & Wellness, we offer several groups currently.
They include:
Psychodynamic Process Group
- All genders
- Thursdays from 5:00 – 6:30PM
Psychodynamic Process Group
- All genders
- Thursdays from 6:45 – 8:15PM
Adolescent Girls’ Empowerment Group
- Tuesdays from 7:00 – 8:15 PM
Caregiver Support Group
- Wednesdays from 10:30AM – 12:00PM (Wednesday, daytime)
OCD Support Group using Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP)
- Upcoming, To be announced
How We Work With You
Your therapist will refer you to a group if/when they believe group will be helpful to you and if/when there is an opening for group.
Group leaders will prepare you for group by talking about group norms, answering questions, and assessing your goals and your fit for the group.
- Groups meet weekly for ~90 minutes.
- Group size is ~ 5-9 people with 1-2 group leaders, depending on the group.
- The cost of group is $75 a session.
We ask group members to commit to a minimum number of groups to give yourself adequate time to get comfortable and get to know people.