--- title: Is it therapy? description: "The Sunflower Effect® is **not therapy in the traditional sense**. Our courses are **educational and transformative** and operate more in the area of **personal development**. They are designed for quieter people who **feel strongly motivated to improve their lives in…" url: "https://www.makingmoves.net/FAQ/is-it-therapy/" updated: "2023-07-01" category: Common concerns and anxieties --- # Is it therapy? The Sunflower Effect® is **not therapy in the traditional sense**. Our courses are **educational and transformative** and operate more in the area of **personal development**. They are designed for quieter people who **feel strongly motivated to improve their lives in the area of confidence, self-esteem and social skills.** It depends, of course, on how you define the word “therapy”. They are **therapeutic and healing, certainly**. The results people achieve on our courses are **as powerful as those achieved in therapy.**In many cases, **more so**. And achieved in **far less time at less cost**. #### Personal Development Most of my own personal work (35+ years!) has been under the personal development banner. So my approach is more orientated towards **personal development and empowerment**. **Not because there is something wrong with you for which you need treatment**. This is the difference in the **whole ethos** of the Sunflower Effect Courses®. See the [**Sunflower Manifesto**](https://www.makingmoves.net/the-sunflower-manifesto/). **My training is in dramatherapy**, so I use dramatherapy structures in many of the courses because this provides a very **safe environment for you to make the shifts you seek**. See my [**training and background**](https://www.makingmoves.net/claire-schrader-drama-therapist-london/). Soon after qualifying, I realised that I didn't want to work in the field of therapy. I wanted to work in a **more expansive way**. My dramatherapy training, however, means that **if a deeper issue should surface,** I will be able to help you. I may suggest that you do some **[individual work](https://www.makingmoves.net/individual-sessions/)** or participate in one of my more intensive courses: [**Breakthrough Plus**](https://www.makingmoves.net/breakthrough-plus/). **My courses are not designed for those who have a diagnosed psychological condition** and are still in treatment. However, there are exceptions to this. People who have been through some kind of “breakdown” (and have fully recovered) have participated in my courses without any detrimental effects. I've also worked successfully with people with **autism and other milder conditions** who are leading relatively normal lives. #### Emotional Baggage Most people have emotional baggage of some kind. Whilst it’s sitting there inside you, it will be **hampering your every move and every attempt to move forward in your life.** The Sunflower Effect® draws **extensively on methods and techniques that I have found the most potent and useful.** You will not be asked to delve into painful experiences in your past – as we are **working in metaphor**(through myths and stories), so there is often no need. In **working through stories and myths**, we are working **directly with the language of the unconscious.**  This gets **much quicker to the root of your suffering** than most traditional forms of therapy. This will enable you to work with the **deeper cause of your issues**. Working in this way will also enable you to shift the energy that has been keeping you stuck **in ways that are liberating and empowering.**In effect, the enactment of the story/drama/myth **does the “work” for you**. ![](https://www.makingmoves.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/baba-yaga.jpeg) Working with a fairy story that has relevance to our lives is deeply transformational Many people attend the Sunflower Effect Courses® in combination with traditional psychotherapy. Often their psychotherapist recommends the courses to them. This can be very powerful. As the Sunflower Effect® has a way of **by-passing the mind and uncovering deep levels of awareness** – which can be explored in further depth with your psychotherapist. Also, many people **know they need to do some work on themselves** but find the boundaries or the language of psychotherapy rather **limiting. And some people have had bad experiences in therapy**that have left them feeling frustrated and manipulated. So my approach offers an alternative, working in a way that is **closer to coaching or other forms of motivational work**. #### The Importance of Laughter **Laughter is a very important part of the process**.  Laughter therapy is popular, but at Making Moves, we **have been laughing for years** – often until our sides split. And this I feel, is **why people shift so fast.** And in my more advanced courses, we have been crying too. **Crying at the wonder of what it is to be human**or because we empathise deeply with someone else’s story. In the same way, as you may find yourself deeply moved by a film, play or book. **This, of course, is powerfully healing.** ![](https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/BoE_MKerpNnSGBW4g7Fw2vsvj267a5f_ksMexKfeKgmMWlzTet0gnbGvzQjQg_WJ2c-DK62wHADp3d6WsWJrp0hRh-qXklmjmNDYtsBnbv7qhAAI7-BlwBtdjRNrZD2dtU8TdRpP) Laughing and crying [**How does the Sunflower Effect work**](https://www.makingmoves.net/FAQ/sunflower-effect-lasting-confidence/) [**What is the psychology behind the Sunflower Effect**](https://www.makingmoves.net/FAQ/the-psychology-behind-the-sunflower-effect/) **[Information for therapists and counsellors](https://www.makingmoves.net/FAQ-category/information-therapist/)** **Claire Schrader**