Therapeutic Practices

EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing) is a type of psychotherapy that enables people to heal from emotional distress caused by a disturbing experience. The approach focuses on past disturbing memories, current situations that cause pain and developing the skills needed for positive future actions and feelings.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a form of treatment that focuses on the relationship between thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. By exploring the thoughts and beliefs that trigger problematic behaviors and feelings, you can identify goals to adopt healthier patterns of thought and behavior that can improve your coping skills and quality of life.

Psychodynamic therapy, also called insight-oriented therapy, focuses on enhancing your self-awareness to affect change through understanding the influence of past experiences and feelings on your present behavior.

Mindfulness-based therapeutic approaches use meditation or meditative techniques to focus the mind on the present moment rather than thinking about past or future events that trigger anxiety, depression, anger, etc. The mindfulness therapy helps you to develop a nonjudgmental attitude towards thoughts and feelings and develop kindness toward yourself.

Brief therapy, also called solutions-focused therapy, concentrates on a specific problem and is goal-oriented. With the help of your therapist, you will identify your strengths and the options for changing the problem for both the present and the future.

In behavior therapy, the goal is to reinforce desirable behaviors and reduce or eliminate maladaptive behaviors. Behavior Therapy is goal and action oriented. Often, the therapy focuses on making changes in both your internal and external environments to affect changes in problematic behaviors.

With eclectic therapy, the psychotherapist uses a variety of therapeutic techniques and modalities to individualize treatment to meet your specific needs.

Interpersonal therapy focuses on the relationships that people have with others and the goal is to improve interpersonal skills. The therapist will help you explore and evaluate interactions with others while becoming more self-aware of patterns of difficulty relating to and getting along with other people as a means of effecting change in behaviors and feelings.

PE is an evidence-based practice targeting the reduction of PTSD-related symptoms and challenging avoidance of a traumatic memory. Through different exposure exercises - performed both in session and for homework - clients will work over the course of 8-12 sessions with their PE therapist to build resiliency in response to their traumatic experiences. Through these exercises, people observe the habituation process, which allows them to regain control over their lives and no longer feel distressed when reminded of their traumatic memories. Sessions also include processing elements, which are unique to each individual client to better meet their respective needs, providing for more insight and closure.

CPT is an evidence-based practice used to reduce the impact of trauma symptoms someone may experience as a result of distressing life events. CPT is implemented over the course of 12 sessions where clients identify different "stuck points" or challenging beliefs they develop as a result of these experiences. Through various writing exercises and processing in session with a CPT therapist, clients will work to reframe their stuck points and expand their perspective pertaining to themself, others and the world. Other topics, such as safety, trust, power and control, self-esteem and intimacy will also be explored, especially as they relate to someone's trauma experience. Often, clients complete this model with a greater sense of self-compassion, too.

In dialectical behavior therapy, the goal is to reinforce desirable behaviors and reduce or eliminate maladaptive behaviors. DBT therapy is goal- and action-oriented. Often, DBT skills focus on making changes in both your internal and external environments to affect changes in problematic behaviors.

Additional Therapeutic Modalities Offered by CM Counsel Practitioners