When working with clients, I most frequently use CBT and Psychodynamic Therapy.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Creates actionable plans with skills and ideas to address symptoms
Finds connections between thoughts, feelings, and behaviors
Accountability that helps jumpstart things after trying things alone hasn't worked
Provides tangible help quickly
Psychodynamic Therapy
Explores meaning, values, patterns, relationships, and desires to help a client understand their self and emotions
Allows for experiencing and managing of difficult emotions in a safe place
Assists with understanding of unconscious behaviors and patterns that play a role in keeping problems going
Helps get to the root of problems over the 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.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/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.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24732748/
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.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26281018/
Shedler J. The efficacy of psychodynamic psychotherapy. Am Psychol. 2010 Feb-Mar;65(2):98-109. doi: 10.1037/a0018378. PMID: 20141265.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/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.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16199119/
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.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23459093/
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.
