Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is a type of psychological treatment that helps individuals understand the thoughts and feelings that influence behaviors. In other words, it focuses on the way people think and act. CBT helps individuals overcome problems by identifying and changing unhelpful ways of thinking and behaving. CBT is commonly used to treat a wide range of disorders including anxiety, depression, phobias, low self-esteem and addictions.
CBT is goal-oriented, present-focused, short-term, skill building, collaborative, research-based, and helpful in preventing relapse.
Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT)
Emotion-focused therapies are therapies which encourage approaching and following our emotions in order to better understand ourselves and our experiences. Emotion is intentionally heightened in treatment sessions with the goals of awareness, acceptance, expression, and regulating with the ultimate goal of increasing the likelihood of change. For some people and in certain circumstances change is more likely when we not only know something, but we fully feel it.
Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) for couples is a short term, structured, emotionally focused therapy specific to romantic relationships. The primary goals of EFT are to expand and re-organize key emotional responses, create a shift in partners’ interactional positions, initiate new cycles of interaction, and to foster creation of a secure bond between partners. Research studies show that 70-75% of couples move from distress to recovery and approximately 90% show significant improvements. This approach has also been modified to be used with families while being mindful of the unique parent-child dynamic.
Emotion Focused Family Therapy is a parent coaching approach designed for parents and caregivers with children who are struggling with emotion dysregulation, behavioral problems, mental health, or any challenging life experiences. Parents are taught strategies to interrupt their child’s maladaptive behaviors, help them cope with stressful life transitions, and support them as they approach and process difficult emotions. Practical skills are taught to improve the parent-child relationship, increase cooperation, and cope with strong emotional reactions (such as anxiety, hopelessness, anger, and silence). Parents are supported to identify their own thoughts and fears that may be “blocking” their capacity to support their child.
Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT)
Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) is as adaptation of cognitive behavioural therapy used to help clients recover from posttraumatic stress disorder and other related conditions. This therapy has four main components that include: learning about your PTSD symptoms, becoming aware of thoughts and feelings, learning skills, and understanding changes in beliefs that have resulted from the experience of trauma.
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) treatment is a cognitive-behavioral treatment approach that was developed by Dr. Marsha M. Linehan in the late 1980s. It was originally used to treat borderline personality disorder and has since been applied in the treatment of a wide range of mental health concerns, and more recently it has been modified to teach young children about their emotions.
The therapy was initially designed to help people change patterns of behavior that are not effective, such as self-harm, suicidal thinking and substance abuse. However, this approach is now applied much more widely, to address any behaviors that are considered reactive or impulsive (e.g. anger outburst, social withdrawal). Treatment sessions are used to identify triggers that lead to reactive states and strategies to increase emotional and cognitive regulation in response.
DBT therapy is most effective when individual DBT sessions occur in conjunction with a DBT Skills Group. Specific skills are taught during DBT Skills Groups that are referenced during individual DBT sessions. These skills are broken down into four modules: mindfulness, interpersonal effectiveness, emotion regulation, and distress tolerance.