Types of psychotherapists. Briefly about the methods of psychotherapy.

“What types of psychotherapists are there?” - That's what people ask.

There are only two types of psychotherapists - good and bad))). But there are a huge variety of methods in which they work. It would probably be more correct to ask “what types of psychotherapy are there?”  With this  Given the variety of approaches in psychotherapy, it is difficult to decide which one is best.
Below you can read a list of the most popular types of psychotherapy with a brief description of the features.  I hope this will help you understand at least a little about their diversity.

Psychoanalysis.

Psychoanalysis is the historically first type of psychotherapy, which was developed by the Austrian Sigmund Freud at the end of the 19th century.
The theory says that internal conflicts are the result of childhood trauma. Thus, by bringing unconscious material to the level of consciousness, the problem is solved.
The patient, lying on the couch, voices all the thoughts that come. And it doesn’t matter whether it’s indecent or insignificant. The psychoanalyst, whom the client does not see, interprets the tangle of thoughts and actions of the client. The techniques may be different, but the process has already been worked out. Therapy - several hour-long sessions per week for several years (usually from 3-6 years). Expensive and time-consuming.

Method of analytical psychology.

This method was developed by Freud's student and colleague, the Swiss Carl Jung, also at the end of the 19th century. The method consists in the study of unconscious complexes and archetypes. Thus, the energy captured by a person's complexes is released to solve psychological problems.
The therapist discusses the client's experiences using metaphors and symbols. Free associations, drawing, active imagination, sand therapy are used.  Hour-long meetings also take place from 1 to 3 times a week for several years (usually from 1-3 years).

Psychodrama method

Founded by Romanian Jacob Moreno in the early 20th century.
The principle of psychodrama is the application of acting techniques to self-exploration. The client in the group plays out his experiences and thus understands the problem deeper.
This is the first group method of work, when important situations from the client’s life are played out. This way he can feel emotions and do things that he would never do in real life.
Usually sessions last 2.5 hours and can last 2-3 years or be one-time.

Gestalt therapy.

The method was developed by the German Fritz Perls at the beginning of the 20th century.
The theory of the Gestalt approach says that a person is a holistic collection of different elements. And Therapy helps to gain this integrity by teaching the client to live “here and now.” The client works through his bodily and emotional reactions, learns to understand his “I”, and be responsible for his actions. The Gestalt method combines the psychoanalytic translation of unconscious feelings to the level of awareness and a humanistic approach (more about it below) - with an emphasis on agreement with oneself.
The duration of therapy is one hour per week for at least 6 months.

Existential analysis

Existential analysis has several founding fathers: Ludwig Binswanger (Switzerland), Viktor Frankl (Austria)  and Alfried Längle (Austria). The latter is still alive at the time of writing in 2020 and gives lectures. As you understand, the method was developed in the mid-20th century. Viktor Frankl's photo.
As the name suggests, it is based on ideas from existential philosophy. Existence is real life.
The life that a person lives freely, with responsibility and meaning, realizing his goals and overcoming difficulties.
Work in this method is focused on dialogue with the client; techniques as such are practically not used. The depth of topics and questions creates a sense of deep understanding. The client learns to pay attention to the feeling of agreement with life and ask himself questions about the meaning.
The duration of existential therapy is from several meetings to several years.

NLP

Neurolinguistic programming was founded by Americans John Grinder and Richard Bandler in the second half of the 20th century.
This method is aimed at changing habitual interaction patterns. Some do not consider this method to be psychotherapy, since it works at the situational level and does not touch deep processes.
This happens by influencing the process (the content is not important, as in other methods of psychotherapy).  The client, with the help of a psychotherapist, analyzes his behavior patterns and reprograms them to model more effective behavior.
Number of meetings - up to two years.

Family systemic psychotherapy.

The founders were Americans Murray Bowen, Virginia Satir, Carl Whitaker, and the Italian Mara Selvini Palazzoli in the second half of the 20th century.
The principle of family therapy is that the work is carried out with the family as a system, and not with an individual person. Therefore, the behavior of individual family members is perceived as the implementation of the rules and laws of the system.
Various schemes and techniques are used in therapy. The most popular is a genogram - a family diagram that reflects the relationships between family members and its history. When studying the genogram, the client understands what exactly makes him behave in a certain way in his family.
Weekly meetings with a family systemic psychotherapist usually last several months.

Client-centered therapy.

Here we will touch on “types of psychotherapists”. The founder of the method is American Carl Rogers (photo on the right).  The method originated in the second half of the 20th century.
One of the most popular approaches. The method of positive psychotherapy in which I work is also client-centered.
The point, as you already understood, is that the client himself can understand the reasons and ways out of his problems. He just needs the help of a supportive psychotherapist. In this sense, it is in client-centered therapy that the psychotherapist is not detached as in psychoanalysis or NLP, but actively supports the client. And the client himself makes the necessary changes.
The focus in therapy is on the relationship with the psychotherapist and the atmosphere without evaluative acceptance. This gives the client the feeling that he is accepted as he is, and he can open up without fear. The client himself determines whether he has achieved his therapeutic goals or not, and can stop therapy at any time.
The number of meetings is 10-15 per request.

Ericksonian hypnosis.

The name of the founder, American Milton Erickson, is clear from the name. He developed the method at the end of the 20th century.
Unlike classical hypnosis, which requires pronounced phenomena, Ericksonian hypnosis gently uses a person's tendency to trance states. A person, remaining in a state of light trance, when he is more susceptible to positive changes, can work through his psychological problems with the support of a hypnotherapist.
Ericksonian hypnosis does not use direct suggestions as in classical gynosis, but only metaphors and parables. Thus, the client's unconscious is looking for a way out and a solution.
The effect of therapy can be in the first session. But sometimes it may take several months of work.

Transactional analysis.

The method was founded by Canadian Eric Berne (pictured on the right) in the mid-20th century.
It is based on the theory of how a person chooses one of three ego states (child, adult, parent) to interact with other people . Accordingly, the goal of therapy is to become aware of one’s games and strengthen one’s adult position.
Therapy consists of determining the ego state in which the client is in a conflict situation and understanding the unconscious scenarios that lie behind it. A person's behavior changes due to this awareness. Elements of various methods, game techniques, psychodrama and modeling are used in therapy.
The duration of therapy is from several meetings to a year or more, depending on the client’s request.

Body-oriented therapy

Body-oriented psychotherapy was founded by the Austrian Wilhelm Reich and the American Alexander Lowen at the beginning of the 20th century.
The theory of the Reich method states that all psychological trauma remains in the muscles in the form of “clamps”. Accordingly, a body-oriented psychotherapist uses a number of special physical exercises and analyzes bodily sensations and emotional responses.
The task of the person who performs the exercises is to understand himself through his body. Emotions, desires, needs and feelings are manifested through the body, accordingly, changing the way the body works changes life beliefs and solves psychological problems.
Classes can be individual or group and last from several months to a year depending on the needs of the client.

Positive psychotherapy

The method was founded by the Persian Nossrat Pezeshkian who emigrated to Germany (pictured with his wife Manizhe)  at the end of the 20th century.
He combined the Western psychodynamic approach (taking theoretical foundations from psychoanalysis) with the client-centered approach (Rogers) added a lot  tools that help to work with different cultures (the approach is also called cross-cultural positive therapy. Positive from Latin. “positum” - real. The method helps to see the real picture of the problem and hidden resources for overcoming it.

A combination of rational techniques (balance models, analysis of current abilities) and techniques for working with the unconscious (metaphors and parables) helps the client to realize internal and key conflicts and change life scenarios.
The advantage of this innovative method is that thanks to With a clear structure, you can select the most effective techniques from any method for the client, which speeds up therapy. The method is short-term.
The number of meetings is on average from 5 to 10 per client request.

Personally, I have been working in the method of positive psychotherapy for more than 10 years and will be happy to help you solve your psychological problems online or in person in Kyiv. If necessary, I can use techniques from other approaches listed above.
You can read reviews of my clients on the website. To schedule a consultation, click the button below.
I hope this article was informative and will help you decide on the choice of method. It is important that it suits you.
Take action and you will succeed!