TYPES OF TREATMENT
There are many unique ways of approaching psychotherapy.
Mental health providers are generally drawn to one or more of these perspectives. Each approach acts as a roadmap to help the clinician understand their clients’ problems and possible solutions.
The kind of treatment you experience will depend on a variety of factors:
Current mental health research
Your therapist’s theoretical orientation
What works best for your specific situation
Your mental health professional’s approach to therapy will affect the course of treatment. Clinicians who use cognitive-behavioral therapy, for example, have a practical approach to treatment. Your therapist might ask you to practice certain tasks designed to help you develop more effective coping skills. This approach often involves homework assignments that build up healthy mental habits.
Your provider might ask you to gather more information, such as logging or journaling your reactions to particular situations as they occur; Or your therapist might want you to practice new skills between sessions, such as asking someone with a social phobia to slowly begin to approach social interactions with others. You may also have reading assignments to educate you more about a particular topic relevant to your treatment journey.
In contrast, psychoanalytic and humanistic approaches generally focus more on talking than doing. You might spend your sessions discussing your early experiences to help you and your therapist better understand the root causes of your current problems.
Your mental health provider may blend elements from several styles of psychotherapy. In fact, most therapists don’t tie themselves to one singular approach. Instead, they combine parts of several approaches to tailor treatment to each client’s needs. This is called an eclectic approach.
The main thing to understand is whether your therapist has expertise in the area you need help with and whether your therapist feels best suited to help you.