When contemplating the concept of psychotherapy, it’s not uncommon to conjure up images of a grand office space adorned with an extravagant leather sofa, where a patient reclines while reflecting on past childhood experiences. While this depiction may be prevalent in pop culture, it’s essential to recognize that psychotherapy includes a diverse range of therapies that don’t fit this classic but outdated stereotype.
As a clinician, you’ll need to learn about the different psychotherapeutic options available, as 75% of patients who receive psychotherapy benefit from it. Take a few minutes to read this handy overview of psychotherapies in use, including Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT), Psychodynamic Psychotherapy, and Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy (DDP), so you can provide better care to any of your patients living with mental health conditions or dealing with emotional distress.
It’s important to note that psychotherapy can be used with or without medication. Depending on the condition your patient presents with, you’ll consider which would be the most beneficial option so that you can formulate an effective treatment plan. Equipping yourself with an understanding of the therapeutic techniques available is an excellent way to give your patients the best care possible!
What is psychotherapy?
Before delving into specific psychotherapy techniques, let’s take a moment to learn about psychotherapy. At its essence, psychotherapy is a mental health treatment that makes use of a variety of communication methods to evaluate, diagnose, and address dysfunctional thought and behavioral patterns along with emotional responses. Important psychotherapy principles include communication, emotional support, and a healthy therapeutic relationship.
Building a trusting environment between clinicians and patients is critical to supporting patients and ensuring they feel heard and respected. During a psychotherapy session where sensitive information or difficult emotions are often shared, patients need to feel safe and supported. Some good techniques practiced during psychotherapy sessions include active listening, empathy, and working with patients to set goals.
Now that we have a brief overview of psychotherapy, let’s take a look at the types of disorders that it can treat:
- Anxiety disorders
- Mood disorders
- Substance use disorders
- Eating disorders
- Personality disorders
- Psychosis
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Psychotherapy is also helpful for patients dealing with:
- Stress
- Physical or emotional trauma
- Medical conditions (autoimmune diseases, chronic pain, cancer, and more)
- Death of a loved one
- Divorce
- Job issues
- Relationship troubles
- Quitting smoking
- Sexual difficulties
As previously mentioned, psychotherapy is beneficial for many patients who try it. However, clinicians should be aware of not only its strengths but also its limitations. Check out some of the benefits and limitations of psychotherapy for patients below.
Benefits of Psychotherapy
- Development of healthier coping mechanisms
- Participation in decision-making
- Improved well-being
- Identification of underlying issues
- Increased self-awareness
- Stronger relationships
- Reduction in symptoms
- Increase in work and overall life satisfaction
- Less medical issues
- Discuss issues in a non-judgmental and safe setting
Limitations of Psychotherapy
- May trigger emotional discomfort or suicidal thoughts
- Difficulty finding the right therapist
- Time and financial commitment may be burdensome
- May not see improvement with specific therapeutic intervention
- A patient may not be willing to be honest, which is crucial to making progress
Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT)
Let’s start learning about specific psychotherapy techniques!
Let’s begin with Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT). IPT was developed by Dr. Gerald Klerman and Myrna Weissman in 1969 to test the effectiveness of antidepressant use for treating major depression, with or without psychotherapy. An important foundation of IPT is explaining to the patient that depression is a medical condition and not their fault to avoid self-blame, as well as understanding the link between a distressing life event and the manifestation of mood symptoms.
IPT is a time-limited psychotherapy often used for depression, usually 12–16 weeks, with a focus on evaluating interpersonal relationships and finding ways to improve social functioning. The leading theory of IPT is that if the interpersonal difficulty is resolved, mood symptoms should resolve, and the patient’s social functioning should improve. The therapist’s goal is to serve as an ally to the patient and use techniques such as role-play, communication analysis, and problem-solving to reinforce healthy interpersonal skills.
Interpersonal Psychotherapy is used to treat the following disorders and emotional issues:
- Major depressive disorder (MDD)
- Anxiety disorders
- Eating disorders
- Substance use disorders
- Post-traumatic stress disorder
- Grief
- Social isolation
- Life transitions
The strengths of IPT outweigh the limitations. The benefits include:
- Increased awareness of the impact of emotions, behaviors, and thoughts on relationships and mood
- Healthier relationships
- Respond more positively to stressful situations
- Better at management of Major Depressive Disorder when IPT and medication are both used
The main difficulty of IPT is the unpleasant feelings it can stir up in patients. However, with the support of a qualified therapist, it can be treated appropriately.

Psychodynamic Psychotherapy
If you’ve ever taken an introductory psychology course, then you’re most likely familiar with Sigmund Freud. Freud was a significant contributor to the field of psychology, and his development of the psychodynamic model is one of the reasons why his work is considered so important. He proposed three levels of the mind: the conscious, preconscious, and unconscious, hypothesizing that these three elements govern personality. First, there’s the Id, a part of the unconscious mind and a driving force for instinctive behaviors. Then there’s the Superego, which dwells between the conscious and the unconscious and serves as our moral center, developing with life experiences. And finally, the Ego, which is a part of conscious awareness that balances the id and the Superego.
Psychodynamic Psychotherapy has evolved since the late 1800s when Freud implemented psychoanalysis. Psychoanalysis, as it was originally referred to, required three to five sessions a week, where Freud provided an open space for patients to discuss their feelings and explore emotional patterns, behaviors, and relationships about the unconscious impact of childhood experiences. However, in his psychoanalytic approach, therapists were typically detached and superior to the “troubled” client.
So, while psychoanalysis is under the umbrella of psychodynamic therapy, there are significant distinctions between the two. In addition to requiring more sessions and being more time-consuming than psychodynamic therapy, psychoanalysis requires a heavier focus on the unconscious mind. In psychodynamic therapy, there’s an additional focus on personality and conscious awareness. The therapist and patient have a more balanced relationship and work together to change deep-rooted patterns and increase self-awareness. The main principles of psychodynamic psychotherapy are exploring unconscious processes, developing defense mechanisms, and redirecting the feelings of an important person in the patient’s life to someone else, known as transference.
There are a range of techniques that therapists may use to facilitate a psychodynamic therapy session, including dream analysis, free association, roleplaying, and more. Dream analysis is used to uncover fears, desires, and motivations presented through dreams. In free association, patients read a list of words and are asked to respond with the first word that comes to mind to access a patient’s inner world. Roleplay helps patients understand how they contribute to relationship dynamics.
Check out the conditions Psychodynamic Psychotherapy can treat below:
- Borderline personality disorder
- Social anxiety disorder
- Eating disorders
- Anxiety disorders
- Isolation and loneliness
- Stress
- Major Depressive Disorder
- Relationship difficulties
Now, let’s explore the benefits and limitations of this type of therapy:
Psychodynamic Psychotherapy Benefits:
- Enhanced interpersonal skills and relationships
- A better understanding of unconscious internal conflicts
- Use of mature coping mechanisms and defense mechanisms
- Improved mental perceptions of relationships
- Decrease in anxiety and depression symptoms
Psychodynamic Psychotherapy Limits:
- Overemphasis on childhood may not help address all issues
- Potential negative effects of transference and countertransference
- Often requires long-term treatment which may not align with the patient’s needs or financial capabilities
Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy (DDP)
Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy (DDP) was developed by clinical psychologist Daniel Hughes as a treatment option for families with foster children or adopted children who have dealt with abuse and neglect within their biological families, leading to developmental trauma. Both the parents and the child participate in DDP to help children adapt to their adoptive or foster parents. Children who have experienced abuse may be afraid of their new parents and have difficulties forming attachments with them. They may also have issues creating a reciprocal relationship based on shared experiences, known as intersubjectivity, and have a strong desire for control since they’re used to a lack of safety.
The core principles of DDP include attachment theory, emotional attunement, and co-regulation of emotional states. Attachment theory in psychotherapy refers to the emotional relationship between parent and child, where the child looks to their caregiver for security and comfort. It contributes to a child’s survival and influences infant brain development.
How does DDP work? The therapist starts by meeting with the parents to build trust, explore the impact of parenting a child who has survived abuse or neglect, and better understand their attachments and their potential impact on their child. Children then join the sessions, and an exploration of their feelings occurs, with the therapist helping them stay regulated through co-regulation (emotional support) and separation of their past and current reality.
Therapists also explore multiple aspects of a patient’s life, such as past traumas and current state. Rather than a lecture or a disciplinary approach, the techniques used include the PACE model (Playfulness, Acceptance, Curiosity, Empathy), storytelling, and role-playing. These sessions help reshape the child’s understanding of their experiences and build intersubjectivity between the parents and the child.
Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy Benefits:
- Decrease in controlling behaviors
- Improvement in relationship and bond
- Better interpersonal relationship skills
- Improved emotional regulation and ability to deal with stress
- A better understanding of emotional experiences
- Increased feeling of safety and security with caregivers
Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy Limitations:
- DDP is geared toward adoptive/foster families, but some children remain in the care of the parents who abused or neglected them
- Biological parents may seek treatment but may be ill-equipped to truly help repair the damage they caused
Conclusion
Mental health is vital to our overall well-being and isn’t something only clinicians in the field can use in treating patients (e.g., psychologists, psychiatrists, and therapists). It’s also an excellent tool for those in medicine. Psychotherapy resources are available for clinicians interested in broadening their treatment capabilities and an excellent path to explore as part of your continuing education. Take some time to explore the psychotherapies mentioned in this article and consider how to potentially integrate them into your practice. The more knowledgeable you are as a clinician, the better you can support and treat your patients, positively impacting them on their mental health journeys!
References
- https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/psychotherapy
- https://www.apa.org/topics/psychotherapy
- https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/psychotherapy/about/pac-20384616
- https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/23445-psychotherapy
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1414693/
- https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/interpersonal-psychotherapy-ipt
- https://www.betterhelp.com/advice/behavior/history-and-principles-of-the-psychodynamic-model/
- https://www.simplypsychology.org/psychodynamic.html
- https://www.structural-learning.com/post/psychodynamic-theory
- https://www.apa.org/monitor/2017/12/psychoanalysis-psychodynamic
- https://positivepsychology.com/psychodynamic-therapy/
- https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapy-types/psychodynamic-therapy
- https://www.verywellhealth.com/psychodynamic-therapy-5218902#toc-benefits-of-psychodynamic-therapy
- https://ddpnetwork.org/about-ddp/dyadic-developmental-psychotherapy/
- https://ddpnetwork.org/glossary/attachment/
- https://ddpnetwork.org/about-ddp/meant-pace/
- https://www.goodtherapy.org/learn-about-therapy/types/dyadic-developmental-psychotherapy
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