Overview

There are many reasons people choose to start psychotherapy.  If there are areas of life you would like to improve but continue to have difficulty navigating or finding support to reach these goals, individual psychotherapy is a great place to start!

Research shows that at least one in four Americans will experience a major mental health disorder in his or her lifetime.  Most people will struggle or know someone who is struggling with loss, setbacks, anxiety and depression at one point or another. 

What is Psychotherapy?

Psychotherapy or “talk therapy” is an approach that evolved from the treatment of psychoanalysis and became integrated in the practice of psychology in the early 1900s and has evolved over time to involve different schools of thought, approaches, and evidence based practices that aim to help people with a wide range of emotional and mental difficulties eliminate or control symptoms that are impacting their quality of life.  In addition, psychotherapy is also helpful for individuals who are functioning at moderate to high levels and would like to enhance or improve certain aspects of their lives such as career and relationship by focusing on very specific, time-limited goals.

Individual psychotherapy is a process by which an individual works with a trained professional in order to gain insight and understanding into their mood, thoughts, feelings and behavior patterns and learn new ways of coping in order to better respond to life’s challenges.  Some of the problems that can be helped with psychotherapy include but are not limited to relationship problems, work stress, mood instability, depression, anxiety, low confidence/self-esteem and medical illness.  

Sessions are typically held once a week for approximately 45-55 minutes and generally include an initial assessment process where information is gathered regarding one’s full family, developmental, medical, educational and relationship history.  

Psychotherapy is a collaborative relationship that requires client and therapist to work together and be actively involved in order to reach mutually agreed upon goals for treatment.  In order to facilitate this process and have the best chances of success in therapy, it is essential that the therapist and client establish a safe and trusting therapeutic alliance within the boundaries and frame of psychotherapy. 

Confidentiality is one of the basic and essential components of psychotherapy that allow the therapeutic relationship to flourish as it works to promote a safe and non-judgmental space for an individual to be able to share his or her innermost personal, sensitive and vulnerable information.        

Research shows overwhelmingly that psychotherapy is a powerful and effective tool that can help people better cope with some of life’s challenges.  Over 3,000 scientific studies and 300 summaries of studies highlight the positive effects of psychotherapy.  It has been proven to be effective across all age ranges and across various types of clinical settings.  The main predictor in therapy success will ultimately be based upon feeling that you and your therapist are a good fit and collaborate well with one another.    

• Treatment Orientations

• Service Orientations

• Various Service 

• Evidence based techniques and solutions 

• Technique and Treatment Options

There are a number of approaches and therapeutic orientations that are used to guide treatment by professionals.  Your therapist may discuss his or her theoretical orientation(s) and how this will inform the course of treatment.   

Behavior Therapy:

This approach to treatment focuses on specific, learned behaviors and how others or the environment influence these behaviors.  In general, behavior analysts focus on treatment outcomes that are measurable.  There are a variety of techniques that are used to treat a number of problems and symptoms that impact one’s quality of life.  

Techniques are often derived from operant and respondent conditioning principles.  Applied behavior analysis(ABA),  is a form of behavior therapy that typically uses respondent and operant conditioning principles in order to better understand potential behavior change procedures.  These techniques can often help clients diagnosed with Autism, Autism Spectrum disorders, and compulsive behavior disorders such as OCD and Trichotillomania.  

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

The basic premise of CBT treatment is that what we think impacts and shapes how we feel.  Psychological problems can develop in part from unhelpful or distorted ways of thinking.  For example, certain disorders, symptoms or problems may have developed from having thoughts that are not based on current, sufficient, objective, reality-based evidence. Another core principle of CBT is that problems are based in part by learned patterns of unhelpful behavior.   The symptoms of these problems can be relieved by learning better ways of coping and becoming more effective in one’s life. The process of CBT involves helping clients identify and change thinking patterns that are challenging, inappropriate or harmful.  

Strategies involved in treatment often include recognizing common cognitive distortions and then learning to reframe or re-evaluate them with the use of reality-testing.  Insight into the behavior and motivation of others, learning to lean into anxiety producing situations as well as facing fears, role playing, meditating, and learning specific problem-solving techniques can often help clients with reaching goals.  In order to help individuals maintain gains and reach goals, clients practice exercises in session and may be given”homework” to complete and practice outside of the treatment sessions.    

DBT Dialectical Behavior Therapy 

DBT is a specific type of Cognitive Behavior therapy that was initially developed to better help people who are diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder.  This approach emphasized the psychosocial aspects of treatment as the theory driving this approach is that there are certain types of people are more likely to respond intensely to certain emotional situations specifically in romantic, family and friend relationships. The main components of DBT are that it is support-based, cognitively informed, and a collaborative approach to treatment.  The main modules of treatment include mindfulness, interpersonal effectiveness, distress tolerance and emotion regulation.  In order to reach these goals, traditional DBT requires at least once weekly individual and group therapy sessions by a trained therapist.  

Interpersonal Therapy

This form of treatment helps individuals understand how their relationship and communication patterns, such as conflict, avoidance, change in social or career roles, and unresolved grief can impact emotions, behaviors, relationships with others and ultimately one’s mental health.  IPT focuses on learning more effective ways to cope and communicate in relationships as well as gain insight into patterns that are impacting relevant emotions and where they may be coming from by understanding the client’s past experiences.  The goal is for clients to learn how to improve interactions and manage emotions in relationships so that they can experience healthier interactions.       

Psychodynamic Therapy

Insight oriented therapy focuses on the root causes of behavior.  The premise is that oftentimes behavioral problems or negative feelings stem from early experiences in childhood or one’s development that are unconscious and continue to impact current behaviors.  The goal is to increase awareness and understanding of how the past can affect one’s present mood and behaviors. The practice of exploring one’s motives, underlying needs, and defenses are critical to understanding one’s source of emotional distress.  It is thought that as a result of certain childhood experiences, maladaptive thoughts and/or patterns are developed.  The goal is to reveal and resolve these unconscious conflicts that are driving the current symptoms.  Some techniques used in this approach include dream interpretation, free association, and working with resistance and transference.   

What are some signs and symptoms that I should start therapy?

There are many reasons why a person may choose to start psychotherapy.  Signs and symptoms can be mild, moderate or severe.  The main point is that therapy can provide most individuals with the opportunity to feel better and make progress toward personal goals relatively quickly!  You don’t have to wait until problems or concerns are so severe that they are impacting your quality of life as therapy can help address virtually all areas of your life that you wish to improve.   

• Feeling that things in your personal life are not improving

• Failed or highly volatile romantic relationships or with family members 

• Questioning career path or decisions  

• Having difficulty managing your emotions 

• Difficulty concentrating on work or studies

• Overwhelming feelings of anxiety or sadness

• Engaging in dangerous or impulsive behaviors

• Difficulty coping with daily responsibilities and stressors

• Legal, relationship or work problems due to behaviors or symptoms that are no longer manageable

Advantages of individual therapy:

Psychotherapy is an effective treatment for a wide range of symptoms and problems including depression, anxiety, Bipolar Disorder, ADHD/ADD, death/loss, divorce, trauma, abuse, workplace stress, or relationship difficulties. 

In addition, psychotherapy is helpful to those individuals who are looking to enhance certain aspects of their lives, strengths or talents.  Dr. Hersha works with high profile professionals, entrepreneurs, CEOs, musicians, performers/entertainers who want to use therapy as a means to catapult their relationships and careers through becoming more confident, creative, effective, and psychologically minded individuals.

Taking the next step to begin your journey in psychotherapy...

How do I know I’m ready? 

1. You are ready for therapy when you decide there are certain areas of your life you wish to improve and are willing to start exploring patterns of behavior as well as ways you can make changes to improve the quality of your life and relationships.

2. You are willing to commit to a consistent schedule or frequency to engage in therapy for a period of time in order to reach your goals.

3. You are willing to work on developing an open, honest and therapeutic relationship with your therapist. 

How to be successful in therapy?

1. Choose your therapist carefully.  Although you may be in a hurry to get started, make sure to research your therapist’s credentials, educational history, training and expertise.  There are different types of therapists, counselors, social workers, psychologists  and psychiatrists that have different levels and types of training they must complete before receiving their license allowing them to practice. (Learn about the differences here)  

2. Focus on collaboration with your therapist.  Therapy can only be successful if both the client and therapist are on the same page about the course and goals of treatment.  It is important that you communicate your wants, innermost thoughts, ideas and needs in therapy.  View it as an opportunity to develop a healthy and supportive relationship with someone who is focused and invested in getting to know the authentic version of you! This is a great way to gain insight and understanding into dynamics that may be impacting other areas of your life.  Developing an authentic and collaborative alliance with your therapist will make it more likely that you develop deeper insight and make therapeutic gains more quickly in therapy.    

3. Choose a time that works, commit to it and make it a priority.  It is easy for people to make other commitments and responsibilities that overshadow the importance or self-care.  Therapy is the ultimate act of self-care as it allows you the opportunity to “show up” and be the best version of yourself in virtually all areas of your life.  You wont be your best version of partner, friend, relative , employee, leader, student or entrepreneur if you aren’t taking the necessary steps to process and reflect on your current life path and trajectory.  Get in the driver’s seat and stay there with therapy.  Life is too short not to be focused on your happiness and stability.         

4. Set markers/goals for treatment.  What exactly do you wish to achieve and how will you know you are making progress toward these goals? Discuss with your therapist how you plan to review goals and progress. Do you have a timeline? How will this be determined? These goals can include anything related to mood, attitude, emotions, behavior or anything you can observe.  

5. Do your work outside of the sessions.  Therapy typically occurs for 45-55 minutes once per week, however the insights and skills gained during the session should be processed and practiced outside of the treatment setting.  You will develop a deeper insight into some of the driving forces or triggers to mood and behavior symptoms.  This will work to guide you outside of the treatment room, but you must be sure to take time outside of therapy sessions to think about and process these insights.  Doing so will allow you to integrate new skills and practice alternate ways of responding outside of the boundaries of therapy.   

6. Focus on the process.  Therapy is an amazing gift that you give yourself.  It can be viewed as a course or class where you are the main topic of interest and the goal is to help you transform and experience life at a higher level of insight and understanding to who you are at your core.  It is a rare opportunity for an individual to experience a supportive, non-judgmental relationship where the therapist is mainly focusing on your personal goals, wants, needs and desire to live a more stable, satisfying, and happy life.