A Clients Guide to Schema TherapyDavid C. Bricker, Ph.D. and Jeffrey E. Young, Ph.D.Schema Therapy InstituteHARRY is a 45-year old middle -level manager. He has been married for 16 years, but hismarriage has been very troubled. He and his wife are often resentful of each other, theyrarely communicate on an intimate level, and they have few moments of real pleasure.Other aspects of Harrys life have been equally unsatisfying. He doesnt enjoy his work,primarily because he doesnt get along with his co-workers. He is often intimidated by his boss and other people at the office. He has a few friends outside of work, but nonethat he considers close.During the past year Harrys mood became increasingly negative. He was getting moreirritable, he had trouble sleeping and he began to have difficulty concentrating at work.As he became more and more depressed, he began to eat more and gained 15 pounds.When he found himself thinking about taking his own life, he decided it was time to get help. He consulted a psychologist who practices cognitive therapy.As a result of short-term cognitive therapy techniques, Harry improved rapidly. His mood lifted, his appetite returned to normal, and he no longer thought about suicide. In addition he was able to concentrate well again and was much less irritable. He also began to feel more in control of his life as he learned how to control his emotions for the first time.But, in some ways, the short-term techniques were not enough. His relationships withhis wife and others, while they no longer depressed him as much as they had, still failed to give him much pleasure. He still could not ask to have his needs met, and he had few experiences he considered truly enjoyable. The therapist then began schema therapy to help Harry change his long-term life patterns.This guide will present the schema therapy approach, developed by Dr. Jeffrey Young toexpand cognitive therapy for clients with more difficult long-term problems. Schematherapy can help people change long-term patterns, including the ways in which theyinteract with other people. This overview of schema therapy consists of six parts:1) A brief explanation of short-term cognitive therapy2) An explanation of what a schema is and examples of schemas;3) An explanation of the processes by which schemas function;4) An explanation of modes and how they function within schema therapy;5) Several case examples; and6) A brief description of the therapeutic processShort-Term Cognitive TherapyCognitive therapy is a system of psychotherapy developed by Aaron Beck and hiscolleagues to help people overcome emotional problems. This system emphasizeschanging the ways in which people think in order to improve their moods, such asdepression, anxiety and anger.Emotional disturbance is influenced by the cognitive distortions that people make indealing with their life experiences. These distortions take the form of negativeinterpretations and predictions of everyday events. For instance, a male college studentpreparing for a test might make himself feel discouraged by thinking: This material is impossible (Negative Interpretation) and Ill never pass this test (Negative Prediction).The therapy consists of helping clients to restructure their thinking. An important step in this process is examining the evidence