The process of psychotherapy varies depending on the personalities of the therapist and client, and the particular problems you bring forward. The primary approaches to therapy that I use are psychodynamic therapy and cognitive-behavioral therapy.
I find cognitive-behavioral (CBT) techniques can be helpful for stress management and reducing acute symptoms. CBT focuses on the thoughts (e.g., beliefs, assumptions, interpretations) and behaviors (e.g., avoidance, isolation, sleep habits) that may contribute to your emotional difficulties or symptoms. I will integrate CBT when it would be the most effective tool. However, for deeper work, I rely on my training in relational psychodynamic therapy. If you are looking for a CBT specialist, there are other providers who would be a better fit.
Psychodynamic therapy focuses on exploration of feelings, wishes, fears, and beliefs about yourself and other people that you may not be consciously aware of before starting therapy. These unconscious processes develop early in childhood through your interactions with important people in your life, and may conflict with each other or with family, cultural, or societal values, leading to unhappiness or unhealthy behaviors. Psychodynamic therapy is relatively unstructured, and I encourage you to share anything that's on your mind. The therapy is about gaining insight and breaking free of what's holding you back internally.
Relational psychodynamic therapy is a contemporary approach that focuses on interpersonal relationships and our internal images of ourselves and other people. When we feel safe, loved, and understood as children, we grow up to trust other people and to depend on them when we need to while feeling like a whole person in our own right. Intergenerational trauma, losses in childhood, abuse and neglect, as well as more subtle problems and patterns that any family might experience, can lead to self-doubt, dissatisfaction, sadness, anxiety, or emptiness. We may close off parts of ourselves that we see as shameful because we were not loved unconditionally as children.
Relational therapy can lead to greater empathy for ourselves and the important people in our lives, more trust and intimacy, and feeling more alive. Over time, we can experience emotions more fully and gain the freedom to try new things.
While the focus is on the patient, relational therapists acknowledge that we, as therapists, bring our own histories, biases, and feelings into the therapy relationship. We welcome feedback from patients about their experience of us in the moment. Sometimes strong feelings and even conflicts come up in the therapy relationship, and if we can work through them together, they can lead to turning points. Patients learn things about themselves and about other relationships in their lives that can lead to new behaviors and greater happiness. Because relational therapists recognize that addressing these dynamics is central to the treatment, we especially value developing a sense of trust and safety in the therapeutic relationship, including addressing issues related to identity, difference, power and privilege.