Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a short-term form of psychotherapy based on the idea that the way someone thinks and feels affects the way he or she behaves. CBT aims to help resolve present-day challenges that negatively impact mental health and quality of life. The goal of treatment is to help identify, challenge, and change negative thought patterns to change the responses to a difficult situation.

When It's Used

CBT can be used with children, adolescents, and adults and for individuals, families, and couples. CBT has been shown to treat the following conditions:

• Depressive Disorders

• Anxiety-related Disorders

• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

• General Stress

• Anger Issues

• Panic Disorders

• Agoraphobia

• Social Phobia

• Eating Disorders

• Marital Difficulties

• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

What to Expect

CBT is often between 5 and 20 weekly sessions, generally around 45 to 50 minutes each. CBT usually starts with one or two sessions focused on assessment, during which you identify the symptoms or behavior patterns that are causing you the most problems and set goals for treatment.

In subsequent sessions, we will begin to identify the negative thoughts you have about your current problems and determine whether these thoughts are realistic. For example, one of your coworkers walks by you in the hallway and does not say hello. One of your automatic thoughts could be “I must’ve done something to upset them.” This could cause you to feel sad, hurt, anxious, depressed, or angry. This line of thinking could result in you saying something inappropriate or hurtful towards them, or further turning inward and isolating from others. CBT will help to challenge that initial, automatic negative thought that led to these unwanted behaviors (making hurtful comments or isolating from others). An example of challenging the thought could be “maybe my coworker got in a fight with his spouse before work” or “maybe my coworker got some bad news from a family member.” Using this approach will change how we feel and respond to any given situation.

During treatment, you will learn skills that help you challenge and ultimately change any negative or unrealistic thinking patterns, so the thoughts are more accurate with respect to a given situation. Once your perspective is more realistic, we can begin to determine an appropriate course of action.

Psychology Today Staff. "Cognitive Behavioral Therapy." Psychology Today, 17 June 2022, https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/therapy-types/cognitive-behavioral-therapy

Cognitive processing therapy (CPT) is a specific type of cognitive-behavioral therapy found to be effective for treating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in people who have experienced violence, abuse, natural disasters, or other traumatic events. CPT is short-term, typically conducted over the course of 12 sessions.

In CPT, the therapist will help a patient who has undergone significant trauma to evaluate their thoughts surrounding the trauma, particularly maladaptive or self-blaming thoughts that may be exacerbating PTSD symptoms, and conditions including anxiety and depression that set on in the wake of the experience. The patient will then learn to challenge those thoughts and take a new perspective when appropriate. Like some other forms of CBT, at-home work is important for CPT; for example, patients will likely be asked to write an account of their trauma between sessions, to be read aloud in a later session.

CPT can be conducted in individual or group therapy sessions, or a combination of the two. A full course of CPT typically involves 12 weekly sessions, each about 60 to 90 minutes long, though this can vary slightly depending on the client’s specific needs.

Psychology Today Staff. "Cognitive Processing Therapy." Psychology Today, 17 June 2022,

https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/therapy-types/cognitive-processing-therapy

EMDR is a psychotherapy technique designed to relieve the distress associated with disturbing memories. Short for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, it involves recalling a specific troublesome experience while following a side-to-side visual stimulus or feeling bilateral hand stimulations. The resulting movements are thought to help reduce the emotional charge of the memory so that the experience can be safely discussed, digested, and stripped of the power to trigger anxiety and avoidance.

EMDR was initially developed as an individual treatment for people with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders (PTSD), but it has since been applied in the treatment of many other conditions such as:

• Other Trauma-Related Disorders

• Anxiety Disorders

• Depression

• Dissociative Disorders

• Eating Disorders

• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders

• Certain Personality Disorders

To be a candidate for EMDR therapy, patients must be able to tolerate some emotional discomfort and not shut down emotionally or become too easily overwhelmed by feelings. Patients must be able to call on cognitive and emotional resources to reprocess their memories successfully.

Expect a course of treatment that consists of six to 12 sessions, typically delivered one or two times a week, although some people may need fewer sessions.

Psychology Today Staff. "EMDR." Psychology Today, https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/therapy-types/emdr

Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) is a therapy that provides skills for managing intense emotions and negotiating social relationships. The ‘dialectic’ in dialectical behavior therapy acknowledges that real life is complex, and health is not a static thing, but an ongoing process hammered out through continuous questioning with ourselves and others. It is continually aimed at balancing opposing forces of how we feel about ourselves and others while investigating the truth of our powerful negative emotions.

DBT acknowledges the need for change that allows you to accept situations and recognize the constant change of feelings—many of the emotions contradicting each other—without having to get caught up in them.

DBT is a treatment for a wide range of mental health conditions to include:

• Personality disorders, including borderline personality disorder

• Self-harm

• Post-traumatic stress disorder

• Bulimia

• Binge-eating disorder

• Depression

• Anxiety

• Substance use disorder

• Bipolar disorder

DBT uses many of the techniques of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). It helps you recognize and challenge our biased or inaccurate thinking patterns that underlie negative feelings and prompt unproductive behavior. For example, patients learn to identify when they are catastrophizing (i.e. assuming the worst will happen). They review their own past and present experience for instances of all-or-nothing thinking, seeing everything in extremes of black or white. We then create a plan on how challenge our way of thinking so we don’t inappropriately react or behave in a given situation.

Mindfulness training is an important part of DBT. In addition to keeping patients present-focused, it slows down emotional responsiveness, affording people time to use healthy coping skills in the middle of painful situations.

Psychology Today Staff. "DBT." Psychology Today, https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/therapy-types/dialectical-behavior-therapy

“Mindfulness is a state of active, open attention to the present. This state is described as observing one’s thoughts and feelings without judging them as good or bad.

Mindfulness encompasses two key ingredients: awareness and acceptance. Awareness is the knowledge and ability to focus attention on one’s inner processes and experiences, such as the experience of the present moment. Acceptance is the ability to observe and accept—rather than judge or avoid—those streams of thought.”

Psychology Today Staff. "Mindfulness" Psychology Today, https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/basics/mindfulness

“Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) is an action-oriented approach to psychotherapy that stems from traditional behavior therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy. Clients learn to stop avoiding, denying, and struggling with their inner emotions and, instead, accept that these deeper feelings are appropriate responses to certain situations that should not prevent them from moving forward in their lives. With this understanding, clients begin to accept their hardships and commit to making necessary changes in their behavior, regardless of what is going on in their lives and how they feel about it.

When It's Used

ACT can help treat many mental and physical conditions. These include:

• Anxiety disorders

• Depression

• Obsessive-compulsive disorder

• Psychosis

• Eating disorders

• Substance use disorders

• Workplace stress

• Chronic pain

What to Expect

Working with a therapist, you will learn to listen to your own self-talk or the way you talk to yourself specifically about traumatic events, problematic relationships, physical limitations, or other challenges. You can then decide if a problem requires immediate action and change or if it can, or must, be accepted for what it is while you learn to make behavioral changes that can modify the situation. You may look at what hasn’t worked for you in the past, and the therapist can help you stop repeating thought patterns and behaviors that can cause you more problems in the long run. Once you have faced and accepted your current challenges, you can make a commitment to stop fighting your past and your emotions and, instead, start practicing more confident and optimistic behavior, based on your personal values and goals.

ACT aims to develop and expand psychological flexibility. Psychological flexibility encompasses emotional openness and the ability to adapt your thoughts and behaviors to better align with your values and goals.”

Psychology Today Staff. "Acceptance and Commitment Therapy." Psychology Today, 21 March 2022. https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/therapy-types/acceptance-and-commitment-therapy

Psychodynamic therapy is an in-depth form of talk therapy based on the theories and principles of psychoanalysis. In effect, talking about problems in a therapeutic setting can be extremely valuable for the individual.

When It's Used

Psychodynamic therapy is primarily used to treat depression and other serious psychological disorders, especially in those who have lost meaning in their lives and have difficulty forming or maintaining personal relationships.

What to Expect

With help from the therapist, the patient is encouraged to speak freely about anything that comes to mind, including current difficulties, fears, desires, dreams, and fantasies. The goal is to experience a remission of symptoms but also derive such benefits as increased self-worth, better use of a patient’s own talents and abilities, and an improved capacity for developing and maintaining more satisfying relationships. Some people are in psychodynamic therapy for shorter periods, and others for longer; patients may experience benefits at varying points of treatment.”

Psychology Today Staff. "Psychodynamic Therapy." Psychology Today, 28 April 2022. https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/therapy-types/psychodynamic-therapy

“Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) concentrates on finding solutions in the present and exploring one’s hope for the future in order to find a quick and pragmatic resolution of one’s problems. This method takes the approach that you know what you need to do to improve your own life and, with the appropriate coaching and questioning, are capable of finding the best solutions.

When It's Used

Solution-Focused Brief Therapy can stand alone as a therapeutic intervention, or it can be used along with other therapy styles and treatments. It is not geared toward a particular population, but aims to treat patients of all ages and a variety of issues, including child behavioral problems, family dysfunction, domestic or child abuse, addiction, and relationship problems. Though not a cure for psychiatric disorders such as depression or schizophrenia, SFBT may help improve quality of life for those who suffer from these conditions.

What to Expect

Goal-setting is the foundation of Solution-Focused Brief Therapy. One of the first questions a therapist asks is called the “miracle question”: “If a miracle occurred while you were asleep tonight, what changes would you notice in your life tomorrow?” This opens up your mind to creating a plan to reach your goal. Along with your therapist, you will begin to chart small, pragmatic ways to make changes in your life to achieve your goals.

One of the tenets of SFBT is a positive, respectful, and hopeful outlook on the part of the clinician. Practitioners maintain the assumption that people have the strength, wisdom, experience, and resilience to effect change.”

Psychology Today Staff. "Solution Focused Brief Therapy." Psychology Today, 1 September 2022. https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/therapy-types/solution-focused-brief-therapy