Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT)
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy is a cognitive-behavioral approach that emphasizes the psychosocial aspects of treatment. In other words, this form of therapy teaches skills to cope with family, romantic, and friend relationships in a safe and healthy way. DBT builds the client’s strengths while identifying and changing thoughts, beliefs and assumptions that make life more difficult for the patient.
DBT often involves both weekly individual sessions and weekly group therapy sessions may be recommended as well. In the individual sessions, the therapist discusses problem solving behavior for the past week’s problems and ways to improve the client’s quality of life. In the group therapy sessions, four interpersonal relations tools are practiced: interpersonal effectiveness, distress tolerance/reality acceptance skills, emotional regulation and mindfulness skills.
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy is an extensively researched, effective psychotherapy method proven to help people recover from trauma and other distressing life experiences, including PTSD, anxiety, depression, and panic disorders. EMDR therapy focuses on changing the emotions, thoughts, or behaviors resulting from a distressing issue, and allows the brain to resume its natural healing process. EMDR therapy is designed to resolve unprocessed traumatic memories in the brain, and for many clients, can be completed in fewer sessions than other psychotherapies.
Family Systems Therapy
Family systems therapy focuses on familial relationship patterns, rather than individual issues. The goal of family systems therapy is to nurture positive change and development through facilitated dialogue with the family. The focus of therapy is not on cause-effect analysis, as this can be perceived as placing blame. Rather, it focuses on how to change destructive thinking and behaviors within the family in order to solve problems.
Experiential Therapy
Experiential therapy involves actions, movements and activities rather than a traditional therapy setting. Common activities are equine therapy, recreation therapy and expressive arts therapy. In these settings, patients are more likely to have unguarded and genuine responses because they are focused on completing tasks rather than the therapy. Though not a primary focus of therapy, experiential therapy also allows patients to find other hobbies and activities to fill their spare time. This is especially significant for individuals recovering from patterns of addiction or substance abuse.
Solution Focused Therapy
Solution focused therapy focuses on what clients want to achieve through therapy, rather than what brought them to the therapist. In this way, it focuses less on the past and more on the present and future. In this therapy, the role of the therapist is to help clients envision a preferred future, and then help them work towards achieving it. The primary tools used on solution focused therapy can be remembered by the acronym MECSTAT, which stands for Miracle questions, Exception questions, Coping questions, Scaling questions, Time-out, Accolades and Task. Using these tools, the therapist aims to guide the client towards a more positive and hopeful future.
