Treatment Formats & Strategies

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CBT suggests that thinking colors our emotions and influences our behavior. As a result, when our thoughts become distorted, pessimistic, or self-defeating we tend to experience problematic emotions (e.g., depression, anxiety) and behaviors (e.g., isolating, arguing). A major focus of CBT is to help people identify unproductive patterns of thinking/acting, evaluate healthier alternatives, and implement these new ways of functioning moving forward. 

Psychodynamic therapy assists people's exploration of how their past experience has influenced their present behavior. It focuses on the psychological “roots” of our emotional concerns by examining unresolved conflicts or problematic relationships. It can be an open-ended process where a person has the freedom and safety to better understand complicated experiences from earlier on in their lives while helping them to develop the internal resources to effectively manage those feelings.     

One of the limitations of individual therapy is that therapists are only hearing one side of the story and that we don't have the benefit of seeing how people interact with others. Couples/family therapy emphasizes relationships as an important factor in psychological health. These approaches help to recalibrate conflict by working on communication skills, negotiating differences in point of view, problem-solving challenging situations, and even arguing in a healthier way.  

MI is a person-centered, non-confrontational method of helping people to explore and resolve the uncertainties they might have about making positive changes moving forward. The relationship between a therapist and client is seen as a partnership and people are encouraged to articulate the barriers that have prevented them from changing problematic behaviors that might include overeating, difficulties exercising, or even drug & alcohol use.

PST helps people manage stressful, challenging situations by learning effective problem solving and solution implementation skills. A variety of strategies are used 1) to identify/clarify what the exact problem is, 2) to brainstorm options for how to manage the problem, 3) to develop effective ways to choose an option that's been brainstormed, 4) to identify what barriers might prevent you from using that solution, and finally 5) to implement/verify the effectiveness of the solution.  

Treating substance use, misuse, abuse or dependence requires methods that are grounded in research and that provide a safe supportive environment for people to explore the effects of their use. Strategies might include cognitive-behavioral therapy, motivational interviewing, problem-solving therapy and relapse prevention to help people to explore their ambivalence about their current pattern of use and to make specific changes to manage this moving forward. 

Relapse prevention is a form of risk management that helps people identify and stop high-risk behaviors like substance misuse, compulsive eating, or drinking. Therapists first assist clients in identifying triggers or high-risk situations like the people, places, things, thoughts, emotions or situations that might ignite cravings/impulses to act in counterproducitve way. We then help clients anticipate and prepare to meet those high-risk situations by developing coping strategies.