Psychoanalytic and Psychodynamic Psychology

Psychoanalytic and psychodynamic psychotherapies help people to improve their lives by gaining a better understanding about how they think and feel. Talk therapies can help create better relationships, more manageable emotions, and the ability to make better life choices. These therapists have been through therapy themselves, and they know what it is like to work through emotions and things in life that are hard to face. These types of therapies help people to feel more steady and secure with other people, to feel more alive and creative, and to rebound better when life gets tough. They can be short or long term, and for individuals, groups, or couples and families. These therapies are for all ages, ethnicities, races, genders and sexualities, no matter their economic situation.

Psychoanalytic and Psychodynamic Psychologists are trained to know about how things we are not aware of can cause us to act in ways that feel out of our control. Therapy looks at how our experiences shape who we are and how things from the past can make us react poorly to the present. Therapists pay attention to how the client feels about speaking with them, and they are trained to understand and work with strong feelings (or even the absence of feeling at all) non-judgmentally in ways that help people apply what they learn in therapy to their lives.

The specialty addresses many emotional and mental problems. Every person and situation is different, and the therapy is tailored to meet the needs of the client. It addresses depression and anxiety, fears and panic, problems in relationships, being overly self-critical, eating disorders, physical pain, a lack of direction and purpose, and just plain not feeling right.

The specialty serves people of all ages, in individual, group, couple and family therapies. It can be an eye-opening experience, for those who have faced horrible personal and family situations, and for people who have experienced racism, hate, and prejudice. It is useful for figuring out issues at work, with friends and family, finances, addictions, and with personal problems. It takes place in private offices, schools, hospitals, clinics, and places of worship.

These psychologists provide testing, consultations to schools, hospitals, and civic groups, and therapy. They are trained to listen and ask questions, and to help improve difficult emotions, intolerable thoughts, and bad relationships through empathic understanding, insight, and a stable and supportive therapy relationship.