Family therapy is found to be more effective in preventing relapses for a patient with bipolar disorder than some other forms of psychotherapies such as group therapy and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). It has also been found to be more effective for those patients who exhibit mostly depressive symptoms than those with primarily manic symptoms.
Family therapy has numerous benefits for the patient with bipolar disorder and their family by helping them understand more about the disorder, in what ways they contribute to reducing or worsening the patient’s symptoms, establish healthier ways of communication, problem-solving, and addressing grievances, enhance connectedness between family members which serves as a better emotional support for the patient’s recovery, and thereby improve the family’s and the patient’s overall well-being and management of the disorder.
The number of sessions depends on the unique problems that the family is facing and the amount of therapeutic support and intervention that the family needs.
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