Psychotherapy
Therapy approaches
A therapy approach is the framework behind a therapist's way of working: how they understand difficulties, what they ask about and which methods they use. Below we describe the approaches you may come across and show which specialists on our team work in them.
Before you choose
Many therapists combine approaches
Many therapists on our team work integratively: they combine methods from several approaches and adapt them to the person and to what brings them.
The relationship matters a lot
Whatever the approach, the relationship with your therapist matters: trust, collaboration and goals you agree on together. Pay attention to whether you feel comfortable talking to them.
You don't have to choose in advance
You don't need to know which approach to choose before your first visit. At the consultation you describe what brings you, and the specialist helps you find the right kind of support.
Book a first visit
Browse the approaches
Cognitive behavioural therapyCBT
Structured work on how thoughts, emotions and behaviour affect one another. One of the most thoroughly researched approaches in psychotherapy.
1 specialist on our team
Psychodynamic therapy
Therapy that helps you understand how earlier experiences and unconscious relationship patterns shape what you go through today.
1 specialist on our team
Psychoanalytic therapy
Long-term work on unconscious conflicts and recurring patterns, rooted in the psychoanalysis founded by Sigmund Freud.
Integrative therapy
An approach that combines proven elements of different schools into one coherent plan, tailored to your difficulties, needs and goals.
Systemic therapy
An approach that sees difficulties in the context of family or couple relationships and looks for change in how close people affect one another.
1 specialist on our team
Humanistic therapy
An approach centred on your experience, choices and search for meaning, with a therapeutic relationship built on empathy, acceptance and genuineness.
Gestalt therapy
A humanistic approach focused on what you experience here and now: emotions, the body and contact with others. Experiments play an important part in it.
Schema therapy
A method for working with deeply ingrained patterns from childhood that resurface in relationships, emotions and the way you think about yourself.
Acceptance and commitment therapyACT
A third-wave CBT approach. Instead of fighting difficult thoughts and feelings, you learn to make room for them and act on what matters to you.
1 specialist on our team
Dialectical behaviour therapyDBT
A therapy for people who experience emotions very intensely. It combines acceptance with learning skills to regulate emotions and cope in a crisis.
EMDR therapy
A structured trauma therapy recommended in PTSD treatment guidelines. You work with a distressing memory during bilateral stimulation, such as eye movements.
Brainspotting
A method for working with trauma and intense emotions in which you hold your gaze on one point in your field of vision and closely notice your body's reactions.
Somatic ExperiencingSE
An approach to trauma and chronic stress that centres on bodily sensations and works with difficult experiences in small, manageable steps.
Solution-focused brief therapyTSR
A short-term approach that focuses less on analysing the problem and more on your goals, your strengths and what is already working, even a little.
1 specialist on our team
Transactional analysis
An approach created by Eric Berne that describes recurring patterns in relationships through three ego states: Parent, Adult and Child.
Bioenergetic analysis
A form of psychotherapy founded by Alexander Lowen that combines talking with body work: breathing, movement and attention to chronic muscle tension.
Ericksonian therapy
An approach rooted in the work of Milton Erickson that often uses therapeutic hypnosis, metaphors and stories, and builds on your own resources.
Process-oriented psychology
Arnold Mindell's approach, which treats symptoms, dreams and conflicts as signals worth exploring carefully, not only as problems to get rid of.
Positive psychotherapy
Nossrat Peseschkian's approach, which combines humanistic and psychodynamic thinking, works with stories and looks at people through the lens of their capacities.
Frequently asked questions
How do I choose a therapy approach?
You don't have to choose on your own. At the first consultation the specialist asks what brings you, what you expect and how you would like to work, and then suggests a form of support. Also pay attention to whether you feel at ease in the conversation and whether you understand what working together will involve.
Does the approach matter for the results of therapy?
It does, but it is not the only factor. Research across different approaches shows that the therapeutic relationship matters a lot: trust, collaboration and shared goals. For some difficulties, such as anxiety disorders or PTSD, particular methods have especially strong research support, so a specialist may suggest a specific approach.
How is psychotherapy different from a psychological consultation?
A psychological consultation is one or a few meetings in which the specialist gets to know your situation and plans the next steps with you. Psychotherapy is a longer process of regular sessions, usually once a week, conducted within a particular approach or integratively. If you are not sure where to start, start with a consultation.