Interpersonal and Social Rhythm Therapy

April 8, 2014 | Posted in bipolar, Blog posts | By bcfoster

Leave a Comment

Clinical studies of Interpersonal and Social Rhythm Therapy (IPSRT) show that it is a very effective treatment for bipolar disorder type I and type II.  As a Toronto-based psychotherapist and coach, I have developed many of the same techniques as Ellen Frank, the originator of the IPSR Therapy. It has to do with modelling effective behaviour and habits in my clients, including good diet, exercise, impulse control, sleep, balance and moderation in life habits. The following is an excerpt from a brochure from Ellen Frank. Please excuse the clinical language….

IPSRT is an empirically-supported individual psychotherapy for the treatment of adults with bipolar disorder. This innovative approach to the management of bipolar disorder was developed by Ellen Frank and colleagues at the University of Pittsburgh and has now been shown to be efficacious in preventing relapse of mania and depression and in treating acute episodes of bipolar depression when used in combination with pharmacotherapy. Open studies suggest that it has utility as a monotherapy for adults with bipolar II disorder and for adolescents with bipolar I or II illness. IPSRT combines a behavioral approach to increasing the regularity of daily routines (social rhythms) with an interpersonal approach to coping with the stresses of the bipolar illness itself, as well as with common interpersonal stressors and social role problems. This approach has now been expanded to include group models for inpatient, intensive outpatient (day-hospital) and standard outpatient treatment.

Read More...

Huffington Post Blog

February 18, 2014 | Posted in Blog posts, Gestalt, Integrative, Intuitive, psychotherapy, reframe | By bcfoster

Leave a Comment

I submit most of my writing and articles on Huffington Post where I’ve been writing for the past year. They are on a variety of topics. Have a look at a sample of the most recent posts:

Bradley Foster MA, is the founder of Giant Steps Coaching, a Toronto-based life coaching practice and BradleyFoster.ca, his psychotherapy practice. He partners with his international clients to help them re-invent themselves, to become more choice-full and authentic.

He earned his Master’s Degree at the University of Toronto and undergraduate degree at McGill University and Columbia University. He completed the three year training program in leadership and psychotherapy at the Gestalt Institute of Toronto. He runs a men’s group and lead workshops and train future coaches. He has also been writing semi-professionally for over thirty years.He worked 15 years as a consultant to major international corporations including Reuters and Thomson Corp. His coaching clients include executives of Fortune 500 companies, CEO’s and lawyers in leadership and communication skills that have helped them reach their peak performance both personally and professionally.He brings balance, perspective, creativity and judgement that help his clients reframe their situations. He is active in his community, serving on several boards and currently volunteers as an executive coach for Save the Children. He is the author of  Deep Coaching: A Guide to Self Directed Living as well as a hundreds of articles related to therapy and coaching.
You can read more about his coaching services at: http://giantstepscoaching.com

Show full bio

Read More...