Overview of Psychodynamic Therapy

Psychodynamic therapy aims to delve beneath the surface of a client’s current symptoms or problems, such as ongoing conflict with a partner or general sadness about one’s present life situation, to uncover the deeper underlying issues and events that may contribute to those problems. It is the belief among psychodynamic therapists that a client’s current problems are, at least in part, a reflection of some unconscious drives (e.g., desires or fears). These unconscious drives are presumed to be related to an individual’s early life experiences, and they continue to affect present-day functioning.

Psychodynamic therapy utilizes talk therapy to identify the origins of the client’s difficulties. There are several techniques to uncover the unconscious drives or conflicts. One such technique is called free association, whereby the therapist invites the client to say whatever comes to mind in the therapy session. The therapist helps the client express him or herself freely without any attempts to filter the content. The idea is to provide the client with a safe, non-judgmental space to deeply explore and analyze some earlier unresolved experiences and emotions. Psychodynamic therapists help their clients process and work through painful memories and emotions. By doing so, clients often experience a reduction in their symptoms or distress. Another emphasis is on helping the client become more aware of his or her pattern of relating to other people, including to the therapist. With greater awareness, the client may then learn to better identify and replace any unhelpful communication patterns with more effective approaches.

A key focus of psychodynamic therapy is the therapeutic relationship between the client and therapist. Building and maintaining a strong working alliance in therapy is critical for a number of reasons. First, the client is likely to place greater trust in the therapist and therapeutic process if there is a solid therapeutic relationship between him/her and the therapist. Trust fosters openness. Clients can only receive help for their problems if they are able to openly discuss them with their therapist. Therefore, if clients are to honestly talk to their therapists about their most troubling concerns, it important that they feel safe and not worry about being misunderstood or not supported by their therapist. The relationship between the client and therapist is also useful in helping the client examine and resolve problems, particularly problems with regard to significant relationships in the client’s life. A client’s pattern of relating to or communicating with others is likely to be manifested in his/her interactions with the therapist. As such, the therapist will help the client identify unhelpful relational patterns through a closer examination of the client’s behavior in the therapy office.

This summary provides a brief glimpse of the usefulness and complex nature of psychodynamic therapy. Due to the vastly different life experiences that clients bring into therapy—among many other interacting factors—there is rarely a standard, clear-cut approach to treatment. Most psychodynamic therapists let the moment-to-moment content in the therapy session dictate which specific interventions to use. This results in a highly individualized therapeutic approach that is rooted in many of the principles outlined above.