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Healthy Modes Blog

  • Happy Child Mode

    The Happy Child mode is one of the positive modes in schema therapy. It represents a state of joy, creativity, playfulness, and spontaneity, reflecting the unmet needs for fun and connection being fulfilled (Young, Klosko, & Weishaar, 2003; Rafaeli, Bernstein, & Young, 2011).

    Strengthening the Happy Child mode is one of the goals in schema therapy, as it helps balance more vulnerable or critical modes and supports the development of the Healthy Adult (Arntz & van Genderen, 2009).

    There are many activities that can activate your Happy Child mode. Some examples are (Rafaeli et al., 2011):

    • Playing games with friends and family
    • Doing crafts, drawing, writing poetry
    • Reading a book, watching a movie, taking up a hobby
    • Telling a joke, making something silly and funny
    • Spending time together with your loved ones
    • Bonding time with your partner
    • Doing imagery activities, such as imagining yourself as a character from your favorite story
    • Laying on the grass and watching the sun
    • Making soap bubbles
    • Playing with your pet
    • laying on the grass and watching the sun,
    • making soap bubbles,
    • playing with your pet …
    • ,,My happy child mode is like a multicolor. It brightens up my day with its colors. It makes me smile and laugh and glow. It fills me with joy and wonder. My happy child mode is like a balloon. It lifts me up and makes me feel free. It takes me to places I've never seen It shows me the beauty of the world and shares my dreams and hopes."

    These activities nurture spontaneity and joy, helping clients reconnect with positive emotions and build resilience (Young et al., 2003).

    References

    • Arntz, A., & van Genderen, H. (2009). Schema therapy for borderline personality disorder. Wiley-Blackwell.
    • Rafaeli, E., Bernstein, D. P., & Young, J. E. (2011). Schema therapy: Distinctive features. Routledge.
    • Young, J. E., Klosko, J. S., & Weishaar, M. E. (2003). Schema therapy: A practitioner’s guide. Guilford Press.es, such as imagining yourself as a character from your favorite story,

  • Healthy Adult Mode

    The Healthy Adult mode is a central concept in schema therapy, which is a type of therapy that helps you identify and change negative patterns of thinking and behavior. The Healthy Adult mode represents your functional self that can cope with challenges, meet your needs, and balance the influence of other modes (Young, Klosko, & Weishaar, 2003; Rafaeli, Bernstein, & Young, 2011).

    There is no definitive answer to how long it takes to develop the Healthy Adult mode, as it depends on factors such as personality, history, goals, and motivation. While general habit formation research suggests that it may take about four weeks to build a new habit (Lally, van Jaarsveld, Potts, & Wardle, 2010), schema therapy emphasizes that strengthening the Healthy Adult mode is a longer, individualized process (Arntz & van Genderen, 2009).

    Schema therapy involves various techniques to help strengthen the Healthy Adult mode, such as imagery, imagery rescripting, role-playing, chair dialogues, journaling, flash cards, and behavioral experiments (Young et al., 2003; Arntz & van Genderen, 2009). These techniques aim to foster self-reflection, emotional regulation, and healthier coping strategies.

    You can learn more about these techniques from a qualified schema therapist or reliable resources (Rafaeli et al., 2011).

    References

    Young, J. E., Klosko, J. S., & Weishaar, M. E. (2003). Schema therapy: A practitioner’s guide. Guilford Press.

    Arntz, A., & van Genderen, H. (2009). Schema therapy for borderline personality disorder. Wiley-Blackwell.

    Lally, P., van Jaarsveld, C. H. M., Potts, H. W. W., & Wardle, J. (2010). How are habits formed: Modelling habit formation in the real world. European Journal of Social Psychology, 40(6), 998–1009. https://doi.org/10.1002/ejsp.674

    Rafaeli, E., Bernstein, D. P., & Young, J. E. (2011). Schema therapy: Distinctive features. Routledge.

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  • HEALTHY MODES

    Healthy modes in psychotherapy are ways of thinking, feeling, and behaving that promote well-being and positive functioning. Different types of psychotherapy may have different approaches to identifying and cultivating healthy modes, but they generally share some common features.

    Through different lenses

    Here are some examples of how three types of psychotherapy – transactional analysis,
    cognitive behavior therapy, and schema therapy – conceptualize healthy modes:
    ● Transactional analysis (TA) is a form of psychotherapy that focuses on
    the analysis of social transactions and communication patterns between
    people. TA identifies three ego states: parent, adult, and child. Each
    ego state has its own way of perceiving and responding to the world.
    Healthy modes in TA are those that involve the adult ego state, which is
    rational, objective, and problem-solving. The adult ego state can also
    integrate the positive aspects of the parent and child ego states, such
    as nurturing, caring, spontaneity, and creativity.
    ● Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) is a form of psychotherapy that aims
    to change dysfunctional thoughts, emotions, and behaviors that cause
    or maintain psychological problems. CBT identifies cognitive distortions,
    such as overgeneralization, catastrophizing, or personalization, that
    lead to negative emotions and maladaptive behaviors. Healthy modes in
    CBT are those that involve realistic, balanced, and flexible thinking.
    CBT helps clients to challenge and modify their cognitive distortions,
    and to develop coping skills and strategies to deal with stressful
    situations.
    ● Schema therapy is a form of psychotherapy that integrates elements of
    CBT, psychodynamic therapy, and attachment theory. Schema therapy
    identifies schemas, which are enduring patterns of beliefs and
    expectations that develop from early life experiences. Schemas can be
    adaptive or maladaptive, depending on how they affect one’s emotions,
    relationships, and self-image. Healthy modes in schema therapy are
    those that involve the healthy adult mode, which is similar to the adult
    ego state in TA or the realistic thinking in CBT. The healthy adult mode
    can also activate the happy child mode, which is similar to the positive
    aspects of the child ego state in TA or the positive emotions in CBT.