Holistic Depression & Mental Health Treatment at Helios West Palm

What Are Holistic Therapies?

Holistic therapy is therapy types that engage all of a person’s physical, somatic, creative, and relational aspects instead of only focusing on the cognitive and emotional work associated with traditional psychotherapy.[1]  In an inpatient mental health setting, holistic therapies serve as an extremely effective adjunct to evidence-based psychotherapy by reaching dimensions of experience that traditional talk therapy and strictly structured clinical interventions may not reach or be able to address.

At Helios West Palm, holistic therapies are not just wellness amenities added on to the clinical program. They are selected based on their therapeutic value, provided by trained professionals, and integrated into each patient’s overall treatment plan. Holistic therapies are not alternative medicine and do not replace evidence-based treatment — they function within the overall clinical environment as part of each patient’s entire treatment process.

Efficacy of Holistic Therapies for Mental Health

Integrating holistic therapies into mental health treatment is supported not just by philosophy but by evidence. Numerous studies continue to provide support for the use of whole-person approaches in treating mental health disorders, especially for those suffering from depression, anxiety, PTSD, and co-occurring disorders. Key findings include:

• Systematic reviews and meta-analyses have found that yoga may help reduce blood pressure and may provide adjunctive benefits for depression.[3]
• Art therapy can be effective for reducing symptoms associated with depression and PTSD and offers complementary benefits to traditional psychotherapy.[4]
• Music therapy has been shown to offer meaningful benefits to those suffering from depression and a variety of mental health conditions, including improving mood, emotional regulation, and quality of life.[5]
• Mindfulness-based interventions have a strong and growing body of evidence supporting their effectiveness in reducing symptoms of anxiety and depression, with additional evidence suggesting they may help prevent relapse in recurrent depression. [6]

At Helios West Palm, these therapies are an integral part of our treatment program rather than programs offered on the side.

What to Expect from Holistic Therapy

Holistic therapy looks and feels much different than traditional talk therapy. It may differ depending on what form of holistic therapy you are participating in and the treatment facility where it is taking place, but most patients can expect the following:

• Sessions that are experiential, instead of talking. You will be doing something, whether it’s making music, creating art, or holding a yoga pose, rather than simply sitting across from a clinician and talking.
• Emotional material surfacing in unexpected ways. Holistic therapies often access feelings and experiences that haven’t come up in verbal therapy, sometimes catching patients off guard in productive ways.
• No performance expectations. No one is going to be judging the quality of creative work or the accuracy of yoga postures; the therapeutic value lies in the doing, not the outcome.
• A different relationship with the body. Many holistic therapies bring attention to physical sensations, breath, and movement, allowing for the re-establishment of the mind-body connection that is so negatively impacted by mental illness.
• Variety from session to session. Different modalities, themes, and experiences make holistic therapy interesting and never repetitive.

Holistic Healing at Helios West Palm

Helios West Palm was developed with the mission of providing a complete program that treats each person as a whole. Our treatment plans form a complete process of care that integrates evidence-based psychotherapy, psychiatric medication management, and holistic therapies into a comprehensive approach to fostering lasting recovery, in which all three components work together to improve overall quality of life.

At Helios West Palm in South Florida, you will experience something rare— a therapeutic experience where the clinical sophistication of a psychiatric program is matched with the restorative elements of a physical environment designed for healing. The holistic approach to treatment allows both the clinical and the restorative components to work together.

Holistic Therapies We Offer

• Art Therapy — Art therapy is a therapeutic process where patients can express themselves emotionally through the creative process of art-making led by a credentialed art therapist guiding the process. This type of therapy is beneficial to patients who have experienced trauma or depression or who have difficulty expressing their feelings verbally. No prior art knowledge is necessary to participate.
• Music Therapy — Music therapy takes the neurological and emotional aspects of music and uses them as a tool to help patients express their feelings. Through listening to music, improvising, writing songs, or reflecting on their experiences with music, patients can access parts of their emotional experience that they may not have been able to reach through talk therapy. Music therapy sessions are facilitated by professionals specially trained in music therapy and incorporated into a patient’s overall treatment plan.
• Yoga Therapy — Yoga therapy combines evidence-based yoga practices, including physical postures, breathing exercises, and mindfulness practices, within a clinical, therapeutic framework to assist people in their recovery from mental health challenges. At Helios West Palm, yoga therapy is individualized according to the mental and physical health needs of each patient, with particular emphasis on nervous system regulation, emotional regulation, and somatic awareness.