PERSONAL THERAPY - A DISORDER-RELEVANT PSYCHOTHERAPY FOR SCHIZOPHRENIA

While the long-term care of ambulatory schizophrenia patients requires highly effective interpersonal treatment skills among clinicians, the re is little evidence to support an empirically validated individual p sychotherapy of schizophrenia. Personal therapy (PT) attempts to addre ss the apparent limitations of traditional psychotherapy by modifying the ''model of the person'' to accommodate an underlying pathophysiolo gy, minimizing potential iatrogenic effects of maintenance antipsychot ic medication, controlling sources of environmental provocation, and e xtending therapy to a time when crisis management has lessened and sta bilization is better ensured. By means of graduated, internal coping s trategies, PT attempts to provide a growing awareness of personal vuln erability, including the ''internal cues'' of affect dysregulation. Th e goals are to increase foresight through the accurate appraisal of em otional states, their appropriate expression, and assessment of the re ciprocal response of others. The strategies are supplemented by phase- specific psychoeducation and behavior therapy techniques. Practical is sues in the application of this new intervention are discussed. Prelim inary observations from two samples of patients, one living with and t he other living independent of family, suggest differential improvemen t over time among PT recipients.