Qualitative research of body oriented psychotherapies from psychiatrists and clinical psychologists' perspectives

Body-focused psychotherapies is an umbrella term with a view to the connection between the mind and body and the relationship of the individual with himself/herself, others and the environment that is rooted not only in the mind but also in the body. Body-based techniques are frequently used in these approach interventions, where the body is accepted as a communication tool. The dissemination of the psychotherapy approach, which includes the body as well as the mind, is important in terms of the community's mental health. This research was carried out in order to understand the perspectives and experiences of 8 clinical psychologists and 6 psychiatrists working in the province of Istanbul, in the focus of body-oriented psychotherapeutic orientations, as well as showing the reader the basic concepts of this approach, which emerged from the work of Janet, Freud and especially Reich and believed in mind-body integrity. The discourses of the participants, obtained through in-depth interviews with the participants, were analyzed with the phenomenological analysis method. As a result of the analyzes, the themes of "personal benefit: healing and curiosity for healing, feeling the need for body-oriented work, being unfamiliar with the concept of embodiment, inclusion and non-inclusion of the body in the therapy process, and curiosity/awakening caused by the interview" and sub-themes belonging to these themes were reached. As a result of the research, it was seen that the participants looked at the trauma phenomenon from a limiting window and it was revealed that these perspectives were reflected in their therapeutic interventions in a restrictive way. In addition, although it was understood that the participants were unfamiliar with the concept of embodiment, it was observed that some of them remembered the concept of somatization instead of this concept. At the end of the in-depth interviews, it was seen that the clinical psychologist participants stated that they would like to touch the client's body more in the upcoming sessions. For some, these interviews turned out to be a tool for them to hear a new approach. Considering that human is a biopsychosocial being, it is thought that psychotherapy orientations, in which the body is included in the therapy process, need to reach people from every socio-cultural diversity within the framework of social justice. It is thought that such orientations can be achieved by reaching clinical psychologists and psychiatrists who provide service to the society as a member of the society they live in. In the light of this information, considering the limitations of mainstream medicine, it is recommended to increase the theoretical knowledge to be formed within the framework of the biopsychosocial model and to put them into practice. Keywords: Clinical Psychology, Mind-Body Integrity, Body-Focused Psychotherapies, Body Senses, Therapeutic Interventions.