What is Psychodynamic Therapy?
Psychodynamic Therapy – also known as Analytic or Insight-Oriented Therapy – is the longest-established and most developed form of psychotherapy.
It is derived from psychoanalysis, the famous `talking cure’ pioneered by Sigmund Freud at the beginning of the 20th Century and further developed by luminaries such as CG Jung, Melanie Klein, Donald Winnicott, John Bowlby and Wilfred Bion.
Psychodynamic counselling goes deeper than many other therapies: it is a process of exploration which helps us discover more about ourselves, our unconscious processes, and the formative experiences and events in our past which have influenced and shaped us into the unique individuals we are today.
How can it help me?
Psychodynamic Counselling helps people in difficulty by offering insights into `what makes them tick’ , both as individuals and in relationship with others.
As Freud put it, “Psychoanalysis … supplies the thread that leads … out of the labyrinth of …the unconscious”
The insights analytic counselling provides can help individuals work through a range of difficulties rooted in confusion, trauma and distress – like chronic anxiety, depression, sleep disturbances, disordered eating and addictive behaviour.
It can also help if we are struggling with our sexuality, striving to cope with bereavement and loss, or encountering problems with relationships.
For couples, psychodynamic therapy offers valuable insights into the dynamics of their relationship, helping to improve their mutual understanding and enhance communication and problem-solving skills.
“The quality of your relationships determines the quality of your life” – Esther Perel
And remember, there are many kinds of `couple’. While many people seek help with their marriage or sexual relationship, others find relationship counselling helps them manage conflict with their parents, children, siblings or other family members.
Even business partners or colleagues who cannot get along can benefit from relationship counselling, as it provides a safe place to express and talk through feelings, to hear and feel heard, so that they can better negotiate areas of conflict and find mutually agreeable solutions to difficulties.
Why see a counsellor? I could just talk to my family or friends.
Talking troubles over with family and friends can indeed be therapeutic, and there is much sense in the old saying that “A trouble shared is a trouble halved”.
But it can be hard to share our true thoughts and deepest fears even with those closest to us, as we may fear burdening or upsetting them, or feel anxious in case they dismiss our concerns, or break our confidentiality.
We might also worry that they will offer us advice based on what they would do to `fix things’ – and then be offended if we we feel that their solutions won’t work for us.
“Psychotherapy is a learning experience. Improvement is not produced by an external substance (like medication) but by changes within the person. It is like learning to read, write or ride a bicycle. Once you have learned, the skills stay with you.”
– Irving Kirsch; The Emperor’s New Drugs; Exploding the Antidepressant Myth
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