Psychotherapy is difficult to describe. On one level, it’s simple: a couple of people in a room talking about life. But how is that different from talking with a friend or seeking advice from a colleague? 

Bruce Wampold created an intuitively satisfying diagram of how therapy functions in his 2017 book, The Cycle of Excellence:

There is an ever-growing body of psychotherapeutic literature and theory, with each modality (type of therapy) describing its particular version of what therapy is and how it works. These modalities are rich and varied and, for most clients, somewhat devoid of tangible meaning. 

This document provides basic descriptions of several types of psychotherapy that are widely used by therapists today. While some therapists specialize in one specific modality, many borrow theories, techniques, and approaches from multiple modalities, depending on what will work best for a specific client. You can always ask your therapist for more information about the modalities that they practice. 

Being human is complicated. Psychotherapy provides space to explore that complexity in a very personal way. I encourage you to see what the field has to offer and trust your instincts when it comes to choosing your therapist.   

References: Early Career Therapists, What Makes Psychotherapy Work, NIH

Therapeutic Modalities

• Acceptance Commitment Therapy (ACT)

• Client-Centered Therapy

• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

• Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT)

• Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT)

• Emotion Focused Therapy

• Existential Therapy

• Family Systems Therapy

• Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)

• Health at Every Size (HAES)

• Internal Family Systems (IFS)

• Mindfulness

• Narrative Therapy

• Prepare/Enrich Premarital Therapy

• Psychodynamic Therapy

• Relational Therapy

• Sex Therapy

• Solution-Focused Therapy

• Trauma-Informed Therapy

Marcus Berley is a Self Space Seattle therapist who works with high-achieving people who want to access the deeper areas of their lived experience, including individuals who struggle to fully enjoy their success and couples who struggle to address conflict and cultivate a more intimate connection.