FAQs
Most frequent questions and answers
What is BCA Holistic Mental Health Therapy?
BCA Holistic Mental Health Therapy is a new, innovative approach to mental health. BCA stands for Behaviors, Cognitions (thoughts) and Affect (emotions). Each aspect of a person is addressed individually and holistically based on each client’s individual therapeutic needs.
Is BCA Effective?
Yes. Based on anecdotal evidence. BCA was developed by a therapist directly providing mental health therapy services to clients. It was not created in a university setting by professors. So, while it has been highly effective in practice, there has not yet been any official academic research to support its effectiveness. Contact this website if you or anyone you know is interested in doing academic research regarding the efficacy of the BCA Holistic approach.
How is BCA different than other therapies?
BCA defines emotions as power. The reason emotions are views as providing power, and not giving direction or guidance is based on how our brain works, with emotions coming from the amygdala and limbic system, and thoughts coming from the cortex.
It is easy to understand the shift in perspective, away from emotional intelligence and towards emotional power, but the impact of the shifted perspective is profound. For example, when emotions are seen as providing power, then all emotions, no matter how unexpected, unwanted, uncomfortable or overwhelming are natural, normal and acceptable just as they are. There is no such thing as a bad, wrong, immoral, or destructive emotion.
this website if you or anyone you know is interested in doing academic research regarding the efficacy of the BCA Holistic approach.
What do you mean by emotional power?
Emotional power is a complex process, but here are the brief essentials: 1) Emotions give us powerful urges but do not tell us what to do, as we are not driven by instincts. That is, we have no specific response for an emotional urge, but we do have to manage how we express them. 2) Emotional power refers specifically to one of our brain functions – power, guidance, context or regulation. Emotions, starting from the amygdala or limbic system, to give us physical or mental power or energy through urges and impulses, such as electrical synaptic and neuron impulses, or chemical, hormonal or neurotransmitter reactions that power changes in our brain and body. Our brain provides guidance from the cortex by creating thoughts based how the brain is neurologically wired. Memories, originating mostly from the limbic area, provide context related to transferring our emotional power into our thinking directions. The brain stem and cerebellum provide body regulation functions.
Who created the BCA Holistic approach?
BCA Holistic Mental Health Therapy was created by Dane Jorento, MSW, LICSW. It was inspired directly from working with clients seeking mental health therapy services, in trying to provide the highest quality and most effective services. The BCA Holistic spark of inspiration started in 1984 related to Edward Deming’s concepts of quality service delivery; incorporates Erik Erickson’s theory of personal development, and was expanded related to DBT (1999) and EMDR (2002) therapeutic approaches. In 2005, Jorento founded a non-profit [ABC Mental Health Therapy] to further implement and develop the BCA Holistic approach by providing various mental health therapy services. He successfully ran the clinic for 10 years. In 2016, he continued developing and refining the BCA approach by providing individual therapy services with Allina Health. In 2021, he starting focusing full time to write down the details of the BCA Holistic approach.
Where can I find a BCA Holistic therapist?
Currently, there are none, other then Dane Jorento. The purpose of this website, and books that are being written, is to present the BCA Holistic Therapeutic Model and training opportunities so that other therapist can be trained in the BCA Holistic approach.