Counselors Are Now Using Movies for Patient Therapy and for Self Improvement, You Can Too!

Television and movies are known as mindless entertainment by some and also as an escape from reality. But Counselors have discovered a new avenue for them. The use of movie therapy is now being used in counseling practices and there have also been books written about them. You can even use them at home.

People have the ability to learn from watching others, it is called vicarious learning. Movies can be used to help people going through various situations. Care must be taken to use appropriate movies and timing. For instance you wouldn't want to show a depressed person a movie containing suicide. However some break up movies can help people who have just ended a relationship to see that there is a brighter time ahead or even that they are not alone in their pain and others go through it too. It is sometimes helpful to see everything resolved in the less than two hour viewing time. It can be of help in an overwhelming situation. Movies like Rocky are very inspirational to those who may feel that there is no use or that odds are stacked against them. The Bucket List is a helpful one for someone who feels that their life has no meaning or feels like giving up.

Even horror movies have a use. They can serve as warning lessons to both teens and adults and help to keep them from putting themselves in dangerous situations, learning to spot them and they have even served as a teaching method in how to escape. Their examples have been used in reality to save the person's life due to what she remembered from a movie.

Using films for self-improvement can help by being able to change the perspective of the viewer so that they can identify similar problems and change old patterns. Movies can be used as tools for personal growth and inner healing. When used properly as a prescription, this therapy can sometimes help more than months of therapy by taking down some of the barriers of defenses in a counselor's office and letting the mind explore through watching others.However, it does not take the place of a counselor in the case of long term or serious therapy that may be needed for some problems, but it can serve as help in getting through the tough times in life.

There have been many books written about this subject. Here are a few: Movie Therapy Author, Bernie Wooder, Reel Therapy: How Movies Inspire You to Overcome Life's Problems Author, Gary Solomon, The Motion Picture Prescription Author, Gary Solomon, Rent Two Films and Let's Talk in the Morning Author, John W. Hesley, Movie Therapy, Moving Therapy! Author, Fuat Ulus, and E-Motion Picture Magic: A Movie Lover's Guide to Healing and Transformation Author, Birgit Wolz to mention some. The movie prescriptions in these books may just save you thousands in therapy bills and be much more fun!

Books:

Movie Therapy Author, Bernie Wooder

Reel Therapy: How Movies Inspire You to Overcome Life's Problems Author, Gary Solomon

The Motion Picture Prescription Author, Gary Solomon

Rent Two Films and Let's Talk in the Morning Author, John W. Hesley

Movie Therapy, Moving Therapy! Author, Fuat Ulus

E-Motion Picture Magic: A Movie Lover's Guide to Healing and Transformation Author, Birgit Wolz

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Observational_learning

Articles:Real life and reel life. (movies as therapy): Written by Mary Paquette; Perspectives in Psychiatric Care Vol. 39, 2003

Film therapy can engage patients. (Adjunctive Technique to CBT) Written by Mary Ann Moon; Clinical Psychiatry News4/1/2003.