Therapy

Psychotherapy and medication are the most common forms of mental health treatment. 

In general, the goals of psychotherapy are to gain relief from symptoms, maintain or enhance daily functioning, and improve quality of life.

You or someone you know might seek out psychotherapy for many reasons, including:

Dealing with severe or long-term stress from a job or family situation, the loss of a loved one, or relationship or family problems.

Having symptoms with no physical explanation, such as changes in sleep or appetite, low energy, lack of interest or pleasure in activities you once enjoyed, persistent irritability, excessive worry, or a sense of discouragement or hopelessness that won’t go away.

A health care provider suspecting you have or diagnosing you with a mental disorder that is interfering with your life.

Supporting a child or family member who has been diagnosed with a condition affecting their mental health.

 

Types

Individual therapy, which involves working one-on-one with a psychotherapist.

Couples therapy, which involves working with a therapist as a couple to improve how you function in your relationship.

Family therapy, which centers on improving the dynamic within families and can include multiple individuals within a family unit.

Group therapy, which involves a small group of individuals who share a common goal, mental health condition, or lived experience. This approach allows members of the group to offer and receive support from others, as well as practice new behaviors within a supportive and receptive group.

 

What Are the Different Types of Psychotherapy?

Interpersonal (IPT)
Cognitive behavioral (CBT)
Dialectical behavioral (DBT)
Acceptance and Commitment (ACT)
Eclectic

 

There is no “best” type of therapy that applies to everyone. Sometimes, you’ll find that one type of psychotherapy works for one thing, while a completely different one works for something else.

 

There are many types of psychotherapy, but we’ll talk about some of the most popular ones.

Interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT)
IPT usually focuses on treating symptoms of depression that arise after a significant loss, major life changes, or interpersonal conflict.

As its name indicates, IPT focuses on improving your interpersonal relationships and developing social skills as a way to decrease your distress.

 Your interpersonal psychotherapist will likely want to focus on:

sources of social support in your life

current or past romantic relationships

communication styles you rely on

interpersonal conflicts and challenges

Based on this information, they will suggest an interpersonal challenge to focus therapy on.

IPT is often recommended for mood disorders and other conditions, including:

anxiety
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
bipolar disorder
eating disorders
postpartum depression
borderline personality disorder
IPT is a short-term treatment that usually lasts between 12 and 16 weeks.

 

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)
CBT aims to identify thought patterns and beliefs that might be affecting your life negatively. Then, it specifically addresses these patterns.

The CBT strategy is goal oriented. 

The behavioral component of this therapy focusses on certain thought patterns to develop practical strategies to help you overcome them.

CBT encourages your active participation and collaboration in the treatment process. This is why it will often include homework.

 

CBT is usually a short-term therapy. It’s been deemed an effective treatment for different mental health conditions and personal challenges, including:

addiction
depression
obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
anxiety
chronic pain
bipolar disorder
anger management
personality disorders
eating disorders
marital conflict resolution
academic performance

The main goal of CBT is to promote self-awareness. This is based on the concept that you might not be able to change your life’s particular circumstances, but you can switch your perception of and reaction to them.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
The word “dialectical” refers to a discussion and integration of two opposing forces. In other words, it’s when two opposites become or are true at the same time — for example, when it’s sunny but also rainy.

DBT comes from CBT, so it shares some of that therapy’s methods and goals, and it’s also evidence based. What’s unique to DBT is its focus on balancing acceptance and change.

DBT was initially developed to treat borderline personality disorder, but it has been adapted to treat other conditions and concerns as well.

It works well for people who hold very strong opinions or views about important topics in their life.

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Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
ACT invites people to open up to unpleasant feelings, not to overreact to them, and not to avoid situations that cause them.

Its therapeutic effect aims to be a positive spiral, in which more understanding of one's emotions leads to a better understanding of the truth. In ACT, "truth" is measured through the concept of "workability", or what works to take another step toward what matters (e.g., values, meaning)

Family/couples therapy
Family Therapy focuses on helping the family function in more positive and constructive ways by exploring patterns of communication and providing support and education. 

Couples Therapy is a specific type of family therapy that focuses on a couple's communication and interactions (e.g. parents having marital problems). 

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Parent Child Interaction Therapy(PCIT)/Play Therapy
PCIT helps parents and children who struggle with behavior problems or connection through real-time coaching sessions. Parents interact with their children while therapists guide families toward positive interactions.
Play Therapy involves the use of toys, blocks, dolls, puppets, drawings, and games to help the child recognize, identify, and verbalize feelings. The psychotherapist observes how the child uses play materials and identifies themes or patterns to understand the child's problems. Through a combination of talk and play the child has an opportunity to better understand and manage their conflicts, feelings, and behavior.

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Autism/ADHD
Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), speech and language therapy, occupational therapy, and social skills training.