If you're thinking about considering therapy, you've probably seen that there are a surprising number of different sorts available. While some treatments are best suited to specific diseases, others can assist with a wide range of issues.
You will work with a trained mental health expert in therapy. What you do in each visit is determined by your therapist's preferred approaches and the topics you want to address.
Expect to spend some time talking about how difficult situations, emotions, and actions affect your life.
This will most certainly entail dealing with some unfavorable experiences or distressing thoughts. It may be challenging at first, but the final result is usually a better, more fulfilled existence.
Here's a look at some of the most prevalent types of therapy and how to decide which one is right for you.
1. PSYCHODYANMIC THERAPY
Psychodynamic therapy evolved from psychoanalysis, a long-term therapeutic technique for mental illness.
You can anticipate to talk about anything on your mind in psychoanalysis in order to find patterns in your thoughts or behavior that may be contributing to your distress. It's also customary to discuss your childhood and past, as well as any reoccurring dreams or fancies you may have.
How Does It Work?
In psychodynamic therapy, you will collaborate with a therapist to investigate the relationship between your unconscious mind and your actions. Examining your emotions, relationships, and mental patterns are all part of this process.
When compared to cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and other types of therapy, psychodynamic therapy can be a more long-term approach to mental health treatment. Traditional psychoanalysis is a time-consuming treatment that might last for years.
According to research, many people continue to improve even after completing psychodynamic treatment.
What It Is Used For
- Depression.
- Anxiety.
- Disorders of eating
- Addiction to drugs or alcohol
- A number of additional conditions
2. HUMANISTIC THERAPY
Humanistic therapy is a method that examines how your worldview influences your decisions, particularly those that create distress. It is predicated on the assumption that you are the greatest person to understand your own experiences and needs.
Humanistic therapists try to assist you comprehend what you're going through by providing guidance and support without interpreting your emotions for you.
How Does It Work?
Your therapist will assist you in working toward the goal of living the most fulfilling life possible, primarily by allowing you to be your actual self. You'll spend time exploring strategies to improve and increase self-acceptance, as well as talking about the challenges you're facing.
Unconditional positive regard is another fundamental principle in humanistic therapy.
This simply implies that your therapist will accept you even if they disagree with you on certain issues. Humanistic therapy is very beneficial in dealing with negative judgment (seen or real) from others.
In most cases, you'll be the one in charge of the session. When necessary, your therapist will intervene, but otherwise they will actively listen to you, perhaps asking questions to verify they understand what you're saying.
Humanistic methods to therapy include the following:
- Existential therapy: In this philosophical approach to treatment, you'll think about issues like responsibility for your decisions and the freedom to choose them. You may spend some time discussing what specific aspects of your life mean to you and how you can discover more purpose in your life.
- Gesalt therapy: You'll use this strategy to assess how unresolved issues, like as relationship and family conflicts, affect your emotional well-being. Gestalt therapy focuses on the present moment and frequently entails role-playing or acting out experiences through movement or vision.
- Person-centered therapy: This method is based on the idea that emotional pain can occur when people criticize or disapprove of your choices or actions. This might make self-acceptance and growth challenging. As you focus on personal growth and positive transformation, therapists provide acceptance, empathy, and assistance.
What It Is Used For
- depression
- Relationship problems
- addiction to drugs or alcohol
- sentiments of worthlessness or dissatisfaction with one's existence
- challenges with self-esteem
- coping difficulties with chronic health issues
- effects of trauma
3. BEHAVIOURAL THERAPY
Behavioral therapy is a targeted, action-oriented approach to treating mental illness.
Certain behaviors, according to behavioral theory, originate from things you learned in the past. Some of these actions may have a negative impact on your life or cause you distress.
Behavioral therapy can assist you in altering your behavioral reactions.
How Does It Work?
You won't spend much time in behavioral therapy discussing about unconscious reasons for your conduct or working through emotional issues.
Instead, you'll concentrate on techniques to alter distressing behavioral reactions and habits.
Behavioral treatment has several subtypes, including:
- Systematic desensitization: Systematic desensitization combines relaxation methods with gradually exposing yourself to something you are afraid of. This might assist you in gradually becoming accustomed to substituting sensations of dread and worry with a relaxation reaction.
- Flooding: This is similar to systematic desensitization, but it entails facing your concerns straight from the outset, rather than gradually. If you have a fear of dogs, for example, the first step might be to sit in a room with friendly, lively dogs. In the case of systematic desensitization, your initial exposure step could be looking at photographs of dogs.
- Aversion therapy: Aversion therapy teaches you to associate the behavior you want to modify with something uncomfortable or unpleasant. This association may assist you in stopping the activity.
What It Is Used For
- Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) (OCD).
- Obnoxious and stubborn behavior
- Issues with conduct that arise as a result of communication difficulties or emotional difficulties.
- Anxiety.
- Phobias.
- Addiction to drugs or alcohol
4. COGNITIVE BEHAVIOURAL THERAPY
Cognitive behavioral therapy is a short-term technique to treating mental illness. It works in a similar way to behavioral therapy, but it also targets unproductive mental patterns or troublesome beliefs.
CBT is based on the concept that certain feelings or beliefs you hold about yourself or situations in your life might cause misery.
This distress may cause mental health problems, occur alongside them, or emerge as a result of other mental health problems.
How Does It Work?
During CBT sessions, you'll concentrate on detecting patterns and learning more about how they might harm you.
You'll work with your therapist to find strategies to replace harmful thought patterns or actions with more useful and truthful ones.
CBT, like behavioral therapy, does not devote much effort to examining past experiences. Instead, it focuses on addressing current symptoms and implementing improvements.
CBT frequently includes homework or practice outside of therapy sessions.
In a journal, for example, you could keep track of negative thoughts or things that bother you between sessions. This practice helps to reinforce what you learn in treatment and allows you to use your new abilities in real-world settings.
There are also several CBT subtypes, such as:
Dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT): DBT employs CBT techniques, but it emphasizes acceptance and emotional regulation. You can expect to concentrate on improving skills to deal with upsetting or difficult situations. You may also learn how to accept and deal with uncomfortable emotions.
Rational emotive therapy: This method teaches you how to question erroneous beliefs that cause emotional pain or other problems. The theory behind rational emotive therapy is that replacing illogical beliefs with more sensible ones will help you feel better.
What It Is Used For
- substance abuse problems
- OCD.
- insomnia.
- some signs of schizophrenia
- mood disorders, like depression and bipolar disorder.
- anxiety and phobias.
- eating disorders.
HOW TO CHOOSE
With so many possibilities, it can be difficult to commit to a specific type of therapy. If your healthcare professional diagnoses you with a mental illness, they may make certain recommendations depending on your specific requirements.
Finally, the decision is yours. Keep in mind that many therapists combine strategies from many types of therapy. It's also entirely natural to attempt one strategy, discover that it doesn't work for you, and then try another.
Therapy, regardless of approach, can be challenging. You may feel awkward or embarrassed discussing your mental health problems and personal thoughts with a stranger. It is common for this to become simpler over time.
Whether you are going through a difficult moment in your life or have a mental health issue that is causing you significant suffering, your therapist is qualified to assist you without judgment. If you don't believe they are, choose a different therapist.
If you're unsure where to begin, go through the American Psychological Association's database of therapists in your area. Most of them list the different forms of therapy they provide.
Keep the following in mind as you contact possible therapists:
1. What concerns do you wish to address? These can be particular or ambiguous.
2. How will you fit therapy into your schedule? Do you require the services of a therapist who can see you on a specific day of the week? Or perhaps someone who holds sessions at night?
3. Do you have any specific qualities you'd like to see in a therapist? For example, are you more at ease with someone of your own gender?
4. How much money can you really afford to spend per session? Do you want someone who will work with you on a payment plan or on a sliding scale?
It's fine to switch therapists or therapy kinds if one isn't working for you. Continue to look until you discover someone who seems perfect for you.