Q: What is psychodynamic therapy?

There are countless different modalities of therapy, with new approaches being developed all the time, but the three prominent schools of therapy are; Psychodynamic (classical therapy which looks at the client’s past and relates it to the present); Humanistic (person-centred, focuses on the client’s current situation and is very client lead) and Behavioural (learning strategies, setting goals, reprogramming thinking).

I’ve drastically simplified these here. There are some types of therapy which branch off from under these three ‘umbrella’ terms, and others which do not fit into any of these categories at all. 

Psychodynamic counselling recognises that each client is made up of different psychological parts. Some of these parts may be in conflict with one another, others hidden from consciousness entirely. I will encourage you to look at these different parts of yourself, and will work with modes of therapy that I feel are most relevant to you. I will support you in looking at the root causes of conflicts within yourself. I will also be interested in your relatioships, including our counselling relationship, and to do this I may focus on attachment theory and how this applies to your childhood and relationships.

Integration

Although I will fundamentally use a psychodynamic approach, I will work integratively with different modalities when needed. 

If you’re wondering whether I’m the right kind of therapist for you, please feel free to email me at enquiries@joannekaycounselling.co.uk if you have any questions or would like to arrange an initial phone call or introductory session. 

An initial session can be a good place to start. There will never be pressure to book more sessions.