Brief Psychodynamic Therapy (BPT)
Below are links to descriptions of common types of therapy that may help you match your patient with an effective treatment.
Now that you have learned about several types of professional psychological therapies, go on to the next section to learn about behavioral treatments patients can undertake on their own.
Brief psychodynamic therapy (BPT) can be more involved than shorter-term therapies like cognitive processing therapy (CPT), an adaptation of the evidence-based therapy known as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) or interpersonal therapy (IPT). However, BPT is still considered a structured, time-limited intervention. The idea behind psychodynamic therapy is to explore old patterns of behavior, many of which are subconscious and may have been present since childhood. Once those behaviors and patterns are identified, the patient and therapist work on strategies for changing them permanently. Mood lifts as a healthier lifestyle is put into place.
This type of therapy can be helpful for patients who are interested in self-exploration and spending time to gain a deeper understanding of themselves and their motivations.
After a limited number of sessions, patients can expect to see an improvement in mood, a change in some of their behavior patterns, and a clearer sense of their own decision-making tendencies.
Patients who have the resources and are interested can easily move into longer-term psychodynamic therapy that focuses more broadly on mood.