Personal experiences of therapists in conducting long-term group meetings for psychotic patients

In this report, the authors attempt to describe the specificity of the longterm group psychotherapy they have been conducting for students who had experienced psychotic crises. This specificity will be addressed in terms of therapists' emotions that have accompanied them during this group process, as well as their reflections on goals, motivation, benefits and hardships that are inherent, resulting from participation in such a group, both for patients and for therapists. This report also includes a reflection concerning the precisely determined beginning and end of a group process. The role and meaning of parting with the group will be discussed, as well as problems, feelings and reflections which are specific to this group of patients. The experience of being part of such a specific group will be considered as an element of a broader therapeutic context, which is a community treatment system in Krakow for people with diagnosis of a non-affective psychosis.