When working with clients, I most frequently use Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Psychodynamic Therapy.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy has several layers to its approach. First, I can help you find connections between your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. Then, we can use that information to make action plans with concrete steps and skills for distressing emotions. Clients often tell me having a therapist to help brainstorm steps and hold them accountable has jumpstarted progress for them after trying things alone hasn’t helped. This style is most helpful with addressing problems in the present that need immediate attention, like panic attacks.

A second approach I use is Psychodynamic Therapy. Our past can sabotage us in ways we are often not aware of. When we first experience distressing things, we often bottle them up or hide them away. While blocking things out can work at first, it becomes a pattern that creates problems later on in life. You may find yourself unable to get away from drinking, or going from one toxic partner to the next. If you've ever heard of the "unconscious mind" or "unconscious behaviors" this is what people are talking about. In psychodynamic therapy, I help clients explore meaning, values, patterns, emotions, relationships, and previously unconscious parts of themselves. This approach is most helpful for creating insight or facilitating emotional experience that helps us change long-term.

Both of these approaches have decades worth of research supporting their effectiveness.

For research on Psychodynamic Therapy, please reference:

Abbass AA, Rabung S, Leichsenring F, Refseth JS, Midgley N. Psychodynamic psychotherapy for children and adolescents: a meta-analysis of short-term psychodynamic models. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2013 Aug;52(8):863-75. doi: 10.1016/j.jaac.2013.05.014. Erratum in: J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2013 Nov;52(11):1241. PMID: 23880496.

Abbass AA, Nowoweiski SJ, Bernier D, Tarzwell R, Beutel ME. Review of psychodynamic psychotherapy neuroimaging studies. Psychother Psychosom. 2014;83(3):142-7. doi: 10.1159/000358841. Epub 2014 Apr 12. PMID: 24732748.

Barlow J, Bennett C, Midgley N, Larkin SK, Wei Y. Parent-infant psychotherapy for improving parental and infant mental health. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2015 Jan 8;1(1):CD010534. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD010534.pub2. PMID: 25569177; PMCID: PMC8685508.

Driessen E, Hegelmaier LM, Abbass AA, Barber JP, Dekker JJ, Van HL, Jansma EP, Cuijpers P. The efficacy of short-term psychodynamic psychotherapy for depression: A meta-analysis update. Clin Psychol Rev. 2015 Dec;42:1-15. doi: 10.1016/j.cpr.2015.07.004. Epub 2015 Aug 1. PMID: 26281018.

Shedler J. The efficacy of psychodynamic psychotherapy. Am Psychol. 2010 Feb-Mar;65(2):98-109. doi: 10.1037/a0018378. PMID: 20141265.

For research on CBT please reference:

Butler AC, Chapman JE, Forman EM, Beck AT. The empirical status of cognitive-behavioral therapy: a review of meta-analyses. Clin Psychol Rev. 2006 Jan;26(1):17-31. doi: 10.1016/j.cpr.2005.07.003. Epub 2005 Sep 30. PMID: 16199119.

Carpenter JK, Andrews LA, Witcraft SM, Powers MB, Smits JAJ, Hofmann SG. Cognitive behavioral therapy for anxiety and related disorders: A meta-analysis of randomized placebo-controlled trials. Depress Anxiety. 2018 Jun;35(6):502-514. doi: 10.1002/da.22728. Epub 2018 Feb 16. PMID: 29451967; PMCID: PMC5992015.

Cuijpers P, Berking M, Andersson G, Quigley L, Kleiboer A, Dobson KS. A meta-analysis of cognitive-behavioural therapy for adult depression, alone and in comparison with other treatments. Can J Psychiatry. 2013 Jul;58(7):376-85. doi: 10.1177/070674371305800702. PMID: 23870719.

Hofmann SG, Asnaani A, Vonk IJ, Sawyer AT, Fang A. The Efficacy of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: A Review of Meta-analyses. Cognit Ther Res. 2012 Oct 1;36(5):427-440. doi: 10.1007/s10608-012-9476-1. Epub 2012 Jul 31. PMID: 23459093; PMCID: PMC3584580.

van Dis EAM, van Veen SC, Hagenaars MA, Batelaan NM, Bockting CLH, van den Heuvel RM, Cuijpers P, Engelhard IM. Long-term Outcomes of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Anxiety-Related Disorders: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. JAMA Psychiatry. 2020 Mar 1;77(3):265-273. doi: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2019.3986. Erratum in: JAMA Psychiatry. 2020 Jul 1;77(7):768. PMID: 31758858; PMCID: PMC6902232.