Psychodynamic therapy
What Is Psychodynamic Therapy?
Psychodynamic therapy is a form of psychotherapy used to treat a wide range of mental health issues. By digging below the surface to reveal unconscious thoughts, feelings, and associations, a psychodynamic approach can help to ease distress and inner turmoil.
As one of the most established and researched therapeutic approaches to date, psychodynamic therapy has been proven to treat “a range of conditions and populations,” including those struggling with anxiety, depression, panic attacks, eating disorders, and substance abuse, among others.¹ I use a psychodynamic approach in treatment, working to help patients change patterns related to anxious and depressed thinking, relationship conflict, and trauma.
What To Expect In A Psychodynamic Counseling Session
While a psychodynamic approach seeks to uncover unconscious thoughts and feelings, the most essential element of therapy is the counselor-patient relationship itself. As a psychodynamic therapist, I believe our connection is the most powerful tool we have in counseling. Using this relationship as a framework for other interactions in your life, you can develop meaningful, lasting perspectives for resolving the unhealthy dynamics impacting you.
In treatment, you can expect for us to have an in-depth discussion about your early life and history. Using this information, you will develop a more profound understanding of your attachments (early relationships), self-perception, and emotional responses. As we use early models to make sense of how you relate to yourself and others today, you will have a stronger idea of where mental health struggles originated.
Unlike certain approaches like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and other behavioral techniques, psychodynamic counseling doesn’t focus on conscious awareness or surface-level symptoms. Instead, it gets to the core of the symptom itself—where the unconscious suffering lives—to bring you into a state of emotional awareness where true healing can take place.
One way of thinking about psychodynamic therapy is as an opportunity to resolve childhood wounds by fostering a warm, thoughtful, and attentive relationship with an attuned therapist. In creating a new relationship template with a skilled clinician, you can get to know yourself and the world around you in an entirely new and different way.
My History With Psychodynamic Therapy
Early in my career as a Nurse Practitioner (NP), I had frequent consultations with clinicians who specialized in a psychodynamic approach. Of all the therapeutic modalities I studied in school and during my clinical rotations, I found psychodynamic interventions to offer the best model for meaningfully addressing human suffering. Psychodynamic therapy provides a pathway for healing the long-standing, entrenched emotional wounds keeping us stuck in cycles of pain and distress.
Not only does psychodynamic therapy offer lasting solutions for common issues like anxiety and depression—it has the potential to transform our worldview in a way that feels connecting and rewarding. I apply a psychodynamic framework to treatment for all of my patients, from those who struggle with anxiety, depression, trauma, and OCD to those with relationship issues, disordered eating, and other unhealthy behaviors.
Therapy And Medication
Psychodynamic therapy is my main treatment intervention for the most part, though I am licensed to prescribe psychiatric medication. If you choose to integrate medication into your treatment regimen, ongoing therapy sessions will be required to track your response to the medication and help you develop helpful emotional regulation skills. (If you are currently working with a therapist but looking for a prescription, you are not required to attend ongoing counseling sessions with me.)
I strongly feel that psychodynamic therapy is the best intervention for promoting successful long-term outcomes in counseling. By tracing symptoms back to their core, you can heal the pain that has been perpetuating your distress and discomfort.
Heal Past Wounds So You Can Feel Better In The Present
As a psychiatric nurse practitioner (NP), I incorporate elements of psychodynamic therapy into treatment for a wide range of issues, including anxiety, depression, panic attacks, OCD, relationship issues, unhealthy behaviors, and trauma-related symptoms. To schedule a free consultation or find out more about my therapeutic approach, call (719) 626 – 1338.
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