Psychodynamic psychotherapy
It seeks to uncover and understand patterns formed in past experiences and relationships that may affect a person’s life and relationships in the present.
Psychodynamic therapy is based on working with the patient to explore internal conflicts, defense mechanisms, and subconscious processes. The goal of therapy is to help the patient gain a greater understanding of themselves, their emotions, and relationship patterns that embody different perceptions of themselves and others that can create recurring patterns of relationship difficulties.
However, the psychodynamic approach covers not only conflicts, but also situations in which a person lacks the psychological resources to feel stable and whole. In such cases, a person may be very dependent on the reactions and support of others to maintain their emotional balance.
Therapy sessions usually take place once or several times a week, depending on the patient’s needs and therapy goals. It is a free-flowing conversation in which the psychotherapist uses questions, interpretations, and feedback to help the patient explore deeper emotional processes. Often, attention is paid to dreams, slips of the tongue, and the patient’s relationship with the psychotherapist, which may reflect other relationship patterns in the patient’s life.
Free associations are used in the therapy process, where the patient is invited to talk about anything that comes to mind, even if it seems unimportant or inappropriate. Dream analysis helps interpret the content of dreams to reveal unconscious thoughts and feelings. The relationship with the psychotherapist can reflect past relationships, and they are explored during therapy, which helps the patient better understand their reactions and emotions. Defense mechanisms that unconsciously help to avoid unpleasant feelings or memories are also analyzed.
Psychodynamic psychotherapy can be long-term, if the goal is profound personality change, or short-term (16 sessions), if a specific life situation or problem that causes suffering is being addressed. Usually, the psychotherapist and the patient, starting cooperation after assessment sessions, enter into an agreement on the goals of therapy, duration, location, frequency, payment and other important aspects, in order to ensure clear and mutually understandable terms of psychotherapy.
Psychodynamic psychotherapy requires patience and long-term work with yourself. Sometimes, initially, there may be increased emotional discomfort, as unconscious painful themes are revealed. However, in the long term, psychotherapy can help you understand and process past experiences, improve relationships, and build a more stable and conscious sense of self. This therapy method is valuable for those who want to not only solve specific problems, but also to understand their personality, emotions, and improve themselves in more depth.