La psychothérapie et la santé mentale : réflexions et conseils

Le personnel de Médipsy partage quelques réflexions en lien avec la santé mentale et la psychothérapie, ainsi que des conseils utiles pour tous. Si vous avez des questions ou des commentaires, écrivez nous à info@medipsy.ca. N'oubliez pas de visiter le site de Médipsy (www.medipsy.ca) ainsi que le site de la Clinique TDAH (www.adhd-tdah.ca). 

Psychotherapy and mental health: a few thoughts and helpful tips.

The staff at Medipsy Psychological Services share their thoughts on issues related to mental health and psychotherapy, as well as helpful tips that anyone should keep in mind. If you have questions or comments, please do email us at info@medipsy.ca. Don't forget to visit our the Medipsy website (www.medipsy.ca) and the ADHD Clinic website (www.adhd-tdah.ca) for more information. 

Is it lack of sexual desire or just a lack of intimacy?

You are in a relationship, perhaps you’ve been in this relationship for some time, or perhaps it hasn’t been all that long, yet feels like your sexual desire has taken a nosedive. It was all hot and heavy when you first set eyes on each other. You couldn’t keep your hands off one another.
            It’s been a while since you’ve felt those sexual feelings. But in the recesses of your mind, you remember what it was like and how alive it made you feel. It seems like so long ago.
            You may be wondering when it all changed or how your relationship got to this point. Perhaps you’ve been living together for some time; you have the added responsibilities of paying the bills, struggling to make ends meet. Add a couple of kids to the mix and you’ve got a situation that makes it difficult to even have sex let alone set the scene that will ignite your sexual desire.
            The truth is, low sexual desire can have multiple causes; poor health, stress, body image, low self-esteem… but one of the major causes of low sexual desire within a couple is a lack of intimacy. That is the focus of my article today.
            If you are having intimacy issues, chances are you are having sexual issues. I know what some of you are thinking, how cliché. Cliché perhaps, but nonetheless true.
            Intimacy comes from feeling connected to your partner. This connection is created when both individuals recognize that they are, to some extent, emotionally dependent upon the other for love, comfort, support, and protection. “Dependent”, now there’s a bad word, especially seeing how nowadays all the talk is about striving for independence. It is seen as a sign of weakness to admit to any sort of dependency. The truth is, everyone has an innate emotional wanting for trust, security and attachment, be it children to parents or adults to other adults. So, if you or your partner is emotionally unavailable it can leave you feeling anxious, afraid and distant. It is this emotional distance, or lack of intimacy, that determines how well a couple will fair when times are rough, rather than the conflict itself.
            When you have intimacy, you feel loved, soothed, and safe. Therefore the goal is to create, or recreate, an emotional connection in order to better handle conflict. Every couple fights. But having intimacy makes you more open to processing the information you hear. It allows you to empathize with your partner.
            What does this have to do with sex and improving your sex life? Trust me on this one. People with strong intimate relationships have a more satisfying and fulfilling sexual relationship. Without a doubt!

Here are a few helpful hints:

•       Talk about what is bothering you. Whether it is about a conflict between you and your partner, work, he kids, or life in general, just talking about it. Even if it does not get resolved, it still helps.

•       Listen.

•       Don’t criticize. That will only lead to defensiveness and withdrawal.

•       Remember your partner is not your enemy.

•       Express your emotional needs.

•       Realize that in an argument you are both hurting.

•       Do not blame.

•       Identify and admit your emotional hurt and fears. If you are open and honest you allow yourself to be vulnerable. Allowing yourself to be vulnerable increases intimacy. And as I stated earlier, more intimacy means more sex.

•       Be compassionate.

•       Speak from the hurt not from the anger.

 Written by Catherine Novac, sex therapist and couples’ therapist

The opinions expressed here are those of the author only and not necessarily those of Medipsy Psychological Services. Medipsy is a private psychology clinic located in Westmount, Quebec. 

Psychotherapy in Canada: the question is not whether we can afford to make it more accessible, but whether we can afford not to.

The World Health Organization estimates that depression is the leading cause of disability and that it contributes greatly to the global burden of disease. It is also estimated that in Canada, approximately 20% of the population will be affected by a mental disorder, including depression. Such disorders are associated with a marked deterioration in the functioning of individuals, with poorer quality of life and death by suicide, in addition to representing considerable costs both in direct costs for care and in indirect costs related for example to a drop in productivity. Again in Canada, it is estimated that the costs associated with mental health problems amounted to $ 52 Billion in 2006. That's a lot. Can we therefore imagine that we could recuperate the costs of making psychotherapy accessible to all, free of cost or at low cost, which of course means paying more professionals to offer this service?

As a result of our work with Quebec’s National Institute of Health and Social Services (INESSS) following a request from the Minister of Health, we have already established, via a systematic review, that the costs of psychotherapy for treating anxiety and mood disorders is equivalent to that of medication in the short term (and lower when the therapy is given in a group format), and significantly lower than pharmacotherapy in the long run. It's a good start, but can we be more specific?

This is the question that my colleagues H. Vasiliadis, A. Lesage, E. Latimer and myself recently decided to look into. In a socio-economic modeling study that will be released soon, we calculated the consequences –including the financial implications- of depression and its treatment over a 40 year period. Unsurprisingly (others have previously found similar results), out model showed that better access to psychotherapy led to a significant decrease in suffering and to increased health-related quality of life. That in itself should suffice to make the case for greater access to psychotherapy. But let’s imagine for a moment that it is not enough, and that it all comes down to money. Can we expect a return on our investment?

Simply put: yes. IN CANADA, FOR EVERY DOLLAR ($ 1) INVESTED IN PROMOTING GREATER ACCESS TO, AND IN OFFERING PYCHOTHERAPY, OUR MODEL INDICATED THAT THERE WOULD BE ON AVERAGE A $2 SAVING FOR SOCIETY.

Not bad. Obviously, the question is no longer whether we can afford to provide psychotherapy in Canada, but whether we can afford not to.

Dr. Martin Drapeau, Clinical Psychologist
Professor at McGill University

Martin Drapeau is a professor of counselling psychology and psychiatry at McGill University and a clinical psychologist at Medipsy Psychological Services. The opinions expressed here are those of the author only and not necessarily those of Medipsy Psychological Services. Medipsy is  a private psychology clinic located in Westmount, Quebec.