12 Different Types of Therapy

Every person has their own unique thought patterns, beliefs, and communication styles, which is why there isn’t a “one-size-fits-all” approach to therapy. Instead, there are numerous approaches to therapy that can be used individually or in conjunction with each other to help you resolve any internal conflicts you might be experiencing.

Couples counseling is a type of therapy that involves multiple people in a romantic relationship with each other. Couples can be married, long-term dating, or even in fairly new partnerships. The goal of couples counseling is generally to help people communicate better with one another, align on goals, and develop strategies to work together to build a cherished, shared life. Couples counseling can employ many of the other therapy modalities, within the context of a partnership.

Call Harvest to set up an appointment for couples counseling.

Family Therapy, like couples counseling, is centered around getting the people in a family system all on the same page. Different problems can arise within family dynamics, like communication problems, disagreements in parenting styles, conflict between different members of the family unit, and more. Family therapy can employ many of the other therapy modalities, but in the context of several family members together.

IOP therapy can take multiple shapes, including addiction treatment or intensive mental health cases. Most often IOP is a group-therapy program, where you’ll get to learn and connect with people struggling with similar things. An IOP program consists of sessions three to five times per week, generally for 12 weeks. It’s considered a more flexible alternative to in-patient or partial hospitalization treatments.

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This is a therapy modality that functions on the belief that we are all made up of individual systems and emotions (parts) that can sometimes conflict. There are parts of us that can be sad, mad, or angry, and they can find themselves in contention. IFS is geared towards understanding the motivations of different parts and helping get them all on the same page.

EMDR is often employed during trauma therapy. It involves bilateral stimulation while discussing memories or triggers and is frequently considered to reduce extreme emotion surrounding those memories or triggers. EMDR is often paired with traditional talk therapy.

Call to schedule your EMDR appointment.

This type of therapy emphasizes the mind-body connection. It is often used to help people with PTSD or other traumatic experiences and is usually associated with resetting nervous system connections.

Adults learn to communicate using words, but children still express themselves through play. Play therapy allows children to express their feelings through play and offers an opportunity to adjust responses to frustrations through behavior adjustment. A sub-category of Play Therapy is Sandplay Therapy, which involves playing with sand to help facilitate processing. Both forms of Play Therapy are not necessarily exclusive to children and can be used to help understand mental difficulties without traditional talk therapy.

Trauma therapy is generally centered around helping someone recover from a traumatic event or series of events in their life. Within trauma therapy, you will find a lot of other modalities listed here, including EMDR and Somatic therapy.

ACT is a mindful therapy technique that focuses on real-time appreciation and awareness. It has positive connotations associated with healing and “moving forward,” with the understanding that negative events are just a part of the human experience.

Neurofeedback Therapy is an approach that monitors your brain waves and brain activity and helps you understand how your brain is “firing” after different inputs. It can also help you regain control of these brain waves to create better responses in future situations.

This type of therapy uses different forms of art as an opportunity for expression. Common art forms are painting, modeling, or sketching. It’s a great way to make your patients feel comfortable and is not as rigid as traditional talk therapy.

This is a very common therapy form that focuses on one-to-one talk therapy sessions with your therapist to address underlying false or limiting beliefs and how to address them. It can also be used to cope with various mental conditions like anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia.

We appreciate that everyone is unique, and we understand how important it is to cater the therapy process to your individual preferences. We proudly practice a wide range of therapy modalities here at Harvest. If you want to explore a specific type of therapy, we can match you with the right therapist. Reach out today to get connected!