Individual psychotherapy, sometimes referred to as personal counseling or talk therapy, is a process by which an individual seeks to enhance his or her sense of well-being through an intentional interpersonal relationship with a trained mental health professional. Psychotherapy provides a safe, confidential, supportive and non-judgmental environment where you can talk about yourself and explore who you are and what you need and want. It can provide you with the opportunity to identify your core beliefs, your typical ways of coping, your strengths and vulnerabilities, as well as your patterns of relatedness to yourself and to others. This process is often called “self-reflection,” “self-exploration” or “self-discovery.” Your discoveries can guide your decisions in making the changes that you believe will improve your wellbeing.
In general, my work is informed by the relational school of thought within the psychodynamic model of psychotherapy. The cornerstone of this therapeutic approach is the belief that our personalities were formed through our relationships with significant people in our lives, especially in our early formative years. These relationships not only affect the way we relate to others in our adult life but also the way we manage our own feelings, thoughts and needs. Because we were shaped within a relationship, our own growth and change is most effectively negotiated within a relationship. This is why many therapists emphasize the importance of a meaningful relationship between therapist and patient. A competent therapist can help you explore yourself by way of empathically listening to what you say and what you don’t say.When appropriate, and when I believe that the patient can benefit from it, I integrate principles of other models of interventions such as coaching and emotional intelligence training.
A typical individual session lasts 45 minutes.
Extended sessions or “double” sessions are also available when deemed appropriate.
Session frequency is typically once or twice per week
Frequently asked questions:
Q: What is psychodynamic psychotherapy?
A: Psychodynamic psychotherapy is a form of psychotherapy in which the primary focus is on identifying and understanding the underlying thoughts and feelings associated with emotional pain, behaviors and symptoms. This form of therapy is based on the assumption that although our thoughts and feelings significantly and powerfully affect our lives, we are not necessarily aware of them. In other words, they are unconscious. Because we are not aware of what motivates us, we either feel that we have no control over our emotions and actions, or that our life does not make sense to us. Psychodynamic psychotherapy is a process by which the individual reflects on his or her thoughts and feelings through an open-ended dialogue under the guidance of a trained therapist. The purpose of this exploration is to identify the aspects of the self that are not fully known. Through this process individuals gain a better understanding of what motivates them, what they need, and what gets in the way of getting their needs met.
Psychodynamic psychotherapists believe that our adult personality and our specific styles of coping in the present began to develop very early in our lives, first as infants and then as children. In other words, the way we behave today was once adaptive in dealing with our early life circumstances. Unfortunately, coping mechanisms that were effective in our early lives in our relationships with our significant caretakers can be maladaptive in adulthood and can prevent us from developing a fully satisfying and fulfilling life.
Psychodynamic psychotherapy is distinguished from other forms of psychotherapy by the following features*:
Expression of emotions - The therapist focuses on helping the patient describe his/her feelings in words.
Exploration of attempts to avoid distressing thoughts and feelings - The therapist helps the patient identify ways in which he/she attempts to avoid aspects of experiences that are troubling or unacceptable.
Identification of recurrent themes and patterns - The therapist helps the patient identify recurrent patterns of thoughts, feelings, self-concepts and relationships.
Discussion of past experience - The therapist helps the patient recognize past experiences, especially in early life, which affect the patient’s present. The patient gains an understanding of the relations between past and present and the particular ways in which early experiences repeat themselves throughout life.
Focus on interpersonal relations - The therapist helps the patient recognize and understand past and present interpersonal relationships and how they meet or do not meet his/her needs.
Focus on the relationship with the therapist - The therapist helps the patient recognize and understand the way he/she relates to the therapist and how it mirrors the manner in which he/she interacts with other people.
Exploration of fantasy life - The therapist encourages the patient to speak freely about whatever is on his/her mind.
Q: What kind of problems does psychotherapy address?
A: People seek psychotherapy for different reasons. Some people want to solve a specific temporary problem that came up under specific circumstances. Others experience persistent unhappiness and are seeking a change. The goal may be to ease emotional pain or discomfort, or to relieve frustration, confusion, depression, or anxiety.
Q: How does psychotherapy help?
A: Because most of us are not aware of what motivates us, what we need, and why we need what we need, we often make poor choices that leave us frustrated. Psychotherapy helps us get in touch with unconscious memories and feelings and helps us understand them and the way they affect our lives today. Sometimes we are aware of recurrent self-defeating themes and patterns in our life but we are unable to change them. Through psychotherapy, we come to understand the barriers that prevent us from changing. This helps us free ourselves from the burden of past experience to live more fully and freely in the present.
Most often the patterns of our interpersonal relationships repeat themselves in our relationship with the therapist. Therefore, forming a meaningful relationship with an empathic therapist provides a unique opportunity to explore and rework old interpersonal patterns in vivo. This can help us become more flexible in pursuing and maintaining more satisfying relationships outside of therapy.
Unlike other forms of psychotherapy, psychodynamic psychotherapy aims to extend beyond symptom relief. Its goal is to enhance the individual’s capacity to be fully present in his or her life and optimally use internal and external resources to achieve greater satisfaction. By understanding what motivates us, we can have better control over our lives, make more informed decisions, and exert intentional efforts to change some of our decision and choices to better fit our needs, thereby becoming more effective.
Potential benefits from psychotherapy may include:
Alleviating symptoms.
Improving reflective functioning.
Developing more fulfilling relationships.
Using talents and abilities more effectively.
Maintaining a more realistic self-esteem.
Tolerating a wider range of emotions.
Facing life challenges with more flexibility.
Q: Who can benefit from psychotherapy?
A: Almost anyone who is able to communicate verbally and is willing to engage in the process of exploring feelings and thoughts, as well as commit to a process of self-exploration, can benefit from psychotherapy.
Q: Is it true that the most effective form of psychotherapy is evidence-based and that psychodynamic psychotherapy is not supported by scientific data?
A: Many believe that psychodynamic psychotherapy is outdated and not informed by recent scientific research. However, this is a misconception which is far from the truth. Strong evidence suggests not only that psychodynamic psychotherapy is effective and enduring, but also that its effect on one’s life increases over time even after termination of the actual meeting with the therapist. In other words, psychodynamic psychotherapy provides patients with tools and sets in motion a psychological process that lead to ongoing change even after therapy has ended. In contrast, the benefits of other empirically supported forms of therapies tend to diminish over time for most common disorders *.
Empirical evidence supports the efficacy of psychodynamic therapy. Effect sizes for psychodynamic therapy are as large as those reported for other therapies that have been actively promoted as “empirically supported” and “evidence based.” In addition, patients who receive psychodynamic therapy maintain therapeutic gains and appear to continue to improve after treatment ends. Finally, nonpsychodynamic therapies may be effective in part because the more skilled practitioners utilize techniques that have long been central to psychodynamic theory and practice. The perception that psychodynamic approaches lack empirical support does not accord with available scientific evidence and may reflect selective dissemination of research findings.(Shedler, 2010, p. 98)
Research data suggest that psychodynamic psychotherapy is effective for depression, anxiety, somatoform disorders, eating disorders, substance-related disorders and personality disorders. Psychodynamic psychotherapy seems more effective than other forms of evidence-based treatments treating personality disorders.
In addition, studies on therapeutic relationships, human attachment, and neurobiology are only a few areas of research that enrich our understanding of how the human mind works and how psychotherapy heals. This data informs our psychotherapeutic practice today. For example, a large growing body of research – including animal and neuro-imaging studies of human adults – revealed significant detrimental effects of stress and fear on the architecture of the brain, primarily the amygdala, the hippocampus and the prefrontal cortex. These structures are involved in emotional regulation and executive functioning. Therefore, negative impact during a critical developmental period can adversely affect the individual’s ability to make decisions or plans and follow them through, as well as the ability to focus attention, control impulses and store memories. In contrast, warm and supportive relationships promote healthy development of brain structures. Therefore, retrieving memories within a supportive and empathic therapeutic relationship can undo the damage that adverse circumstances imprinted on our brain.
Q: How do I know which therapist is best for me?
A: It is very important to select a therapist who is licensed in his/her professional discipline. Licensing regulations assure that your therapist has the appropriate training and ethics of practice to provide you with the best possible care. In addition, it may be helpful for you to meet the therapist before you decide to pursue psychotherapy with this professional. It is important that you feel comfortable, understood and safe with the person with whom you decide to embark on the psychotherapeutic journey. Establishing a good relationship with your therapist, often called working alliance, therapeutic alliance or rapport, is one of the most important predictors of therapeutic success.
Q: What type of therapy is best for me?
A: This is the most difficult question for me to answer without personally knowing you. Different forms of therapy can benefit the same person or be effective for the same problem. In psychotherapy literature we jokingly refer to it as the Dodo bird verdict*. The Dodo bird is a character from Alice in Wonderland who concluded: “Everybody has won, and all must have prizes.” It is important for you to discuss this question with your therapist when you meet.
*Shedler, J. (2010). The efficacy of psychodynamic psychotherapy. American Psychologist, 65, 98-109.
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