Psychosocial Treatments and Psychotherapy

+ Interpersonal Therapy (IPT)

Interpersonal therapy focuses on improving relationships and helping individuals express emotions in healthy ways. IPT examines a person’s interactions with other people, along with troubling emotions and their triggers.

Examining past relationships that may have been affected by distorted mood and behavior can help a person to be more objective about current relationships. Similarly, identifying behaviors that may be causing problems can prompt positive change. A therapist can offer advice and help individuals make decisions about the best way to deal with other people. IPT also explores major issues that may contribute to depression, such as grief, personal transitions, or periods of upheaval.

One-on-one IPT is often effective for treating depression or dysthymia, a more persistent but less severe form of depression.

Interpersonal and Social Rhythm Therapy is a variation of IPT. It’s often effective in treating bipolar disorder promoting recovery through the development of a daily schedule. This therapy is also helpful for treatment of ADHD, eating disorders, and generalized anxiety disorder. Regular sessions target specific symptoms, typically over a period of three to four months.

+ Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a treatment that focuses on the interplay of a person’s thoughts, feelings, and actions. The cognitive part helps a person identify negative or unhealthy beliefs and shift them to positive beliefs or thoughts. The behavioral part helps a person choose healthier actions and interact with others more effectively.

Through CBT, a person first identifies negative thoughts or mindsets, which involve mental processes such as perceiving, remembering, reasoning, decision-making, and problem-solving. Then, they learn how to replace those negative thoughts and mindsets with positive thoughts, leading to more appropriate and productive behavior.

CBT is considered a first-choice treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety disorders, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). When coupled with medication, CBT is also used to treat people with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, ADHD, depression, eating disorders, substance use disorders, and other mental illnesses.

+ Exposure therapy

Exposure therapy (also known as exposure and response prevention) is a type of behavioral therapy that’s particularly effective for treating obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In exposure therapy, an individual is systematically exposed—under controlled conditions—to the situation that triggers the obsessive thoughts or fear reaction to a previous traumatic experience. They learn specific techniques to help them avoid reacting, and the systematic exposure reduces the paralyzing power of the triggers. In cases of severe symptoms, exposure therapy may be coupled with prescribed medication.

+ Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT)

Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) is a specific form of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). It was initially developed to treat women who were chronically suicidal. Overtime, DBT has proven quite effective for treating and managing a wide range of mental health conditions, including: self-harm, suicidal behavior, borderline personality disorder, substance use disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, binge eating disorder, bulimia, depression, and anxiety. Individuals learn new skills in one-to-one DBT sessions, then practice the skills in a group therapy environment. Some techniques of behavioral therapy are paired with the philosophy that opposites may not really be opposites when looked at differently.

Within the DBT therapy model, there must be a strong and equal relationship between patient and therapist. The therapist assures the patient that the patient's behaviors and feelings are valid and understandable. At the same time, the therapist coaches the patient to accept that it is their personal responsibility to change unhealthy or disruptive behavior. The positive reinforcement provided through DBT can boost the motivation to change and reduce self-destructive behaviors by teaching practical coping skills related to the person’s environment.

+ Psychodynamic therapy

Psychodynamic therapy helps people review early life experiences, thoughts, and emotions, as well as the beliefs they developed as children. Being able to cope with these experiences enables them to better understand their current problems and to recognize how patterns of behavior they developed as children may be contributing to some of the issues they face as adults. Through this process, psychodynamic therapy helps people become more aware of themselves and their own actions.

Although not typically a first-line treatment, psychodynamic psychotherapy can be useful for some patients with depression, anxiety disorders, borderline personality disorder, and other mental illnesses. It is often used in conjunction with medication management.

+ Family Therapy / Family-Focused Therapy

When a person is struggling with a serious mental illness, family members are often profoundly affected as well. Therefore, it is important to acknowledge and address their needs.

Family therapy helps family members communicate better, manage conflicts, and solve problems together. It also helps them understand different ways to express love and loyalty. Family therapy sessions generally include all affected family members as well as the patient. Specific forms of family therapy are commonly used to treat eating disorders and bipolar disorder.

Additionally, family therapy may deal with aspects of a patient's symptoms that are expressions of the pain and struggles of another family member, or of the family at large. In these situations, the patient's recovery may be slowed until the pain in the rest of the family has been brought to the surface and healed. Therapy then is focused on understanding the meaning of the symptoms and helping other family members express their own struggles, so the patient won't have to carry their pain.

Family-focused therapy (FFT) is based on the premise that the individual’s relationship with family plays a crucial role in successfully managing his or her illness. When family members participate in therapy sessions to improve the way they relate to the patient and to each other, it can improve the results of treatment.

Typically, the family and patient attend sessions together. While the specific treatment needs will vary with the patient and family, FFT generally incorporates education on the disorder, improving communication skills to better manage stress, and working together as a family to solve problems. During therapy, family members learn to express negative emotions in a more constructive way, while the patient learns to take responsibility for their own actions and well-being to the extent possible.

+ Psychoeducation

The purpose of psychoeducation is to provide information to help people understand mental disorders and ways to support recovery.

It involves teaching patients/clients and their family members about mental health conditions, how they are treated, and how to recognize the signs and symptoms. Psychoeducation also focuses on ways to prevent relapse so the individual can obtain treatment before the mental illness worsens or reoccurs.

For families, friends, and employers, psychoeducation can provide them with coping strategies and problem-solving skills for more effectively dealing with the individual who has a mental disorder. This enables them to offer better support throughout treatment. It also reduces distress, confusion, and anxiety within the family, which can help support recovery.

Psychoeducation in combination with medication has been used successfully to treat people with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), depression, and other mental illnesses.

+ Dual Diagnosis and Integrated Treatment of Mental Illness and Substance Abuse Disorder

Dual diagnosis services are integrated treatments for people who have what’s called co-occurring disorders—a mental illness and a substance use disorder. Studies have clearly demonstrated more complete recovery for individuals who receive treatment for both disorders.

Dual diagnosis services integrate treatment for each condition, helping people recover from both in a single setting at the same time.

+ Assertive Community Treatment (ACT)

ACT is a highly effective team-based approach that provides comprehensive, adaptable treatment and support to individuals who have a serious mental illness. Treatment teams may include peer support specialists and practitioners with expertise in psychiatry, nursing, social work, substance use treatment, and employment. Team members work together to provide integrated and outreach‐oriented services.

+ Art Therapy or Expressive Therapy

Also known as creative arts therapy, this form of treatment can help people express difficult emotions and thoughts through drawing, painting, music, dance, writing, or other art forms. These expressive acts are an effective way to promote healing.

+ Bioenergetics

Bioenergetics is one of the most theoretically grounded of the body-oriented psychotherapies. It focuses on how the mind and the body store traumas that occur during childhood. This approach permits two different ways to access these traumas and the survival tools the individual used to help them endure the pain. Although these survival tools proved essential to them as children, they are very limiting to them as adults. This therapy applies the insights of the mind combined with exercises to access the wisdom of the body.

+ Animal-Assisted Therapy

For some people, working with animals such as horses, dogs, or cats may help them cope with trauma, develop empathy, and encourage better communication. Companion animals are sometimes introduced to promote emotional well-being in hospitals, psychiatric wards, nursing homes, and other settings where they may bring comfort and create a mild therapeutic effect. Animal-assisted therapy has also been used as an added therapy that may ease behavioral problems for some children with mental disorders.

+ Play Therapy

Used with children, this approach incorporates toys and games to help a child identify and talk about their feelings and communicate with a therapist. Watching how a child plays can sometimes help a therapist better understand a child's problems.