When Short-term Psychotherapy May Be Recommended

Whereas psychotherapy tends to be a long-term treatment for dealing with mental health issues, short-term therapy is more about achieving goals. If you do short-term therapy, you will likely focus on whatever issues currently give you the most trouble. One significant advantage of short-term therapy is that it can help you face the avoidance tendencies you might have if any. Long-term therapy allows some clients to put off dealing with their problems in meaningful ways but having less time in therapy can empower them to acknowledge and deal with their most pressing issues.

When is short-term psychotherapy recommended?

Short-term therapy usually consists of 10–20 sessions over three to five months. This type of short-term treatment came about in the 1950s and became more widely practiced in the 1980s when new research showed it to be beneficial.

There are three types of short-term therapy:

• Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)
• Short-term psychodynamics
• Gestalt therapy

1. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)

In CBT, you will gradually be exposed to things that cause you distress, in order to build up your tolerance for them, which will eventually reduce your distress when facing them. CBT is especially effective as a treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

2. Short-term psychodynamics

Classic psychodynamics would involve taking a fuller, more contemplative approach to your life. Short-term psychodynamics explores more specific parts of your life experiences, such as your defense mechanisms and relationships. Because short-term psychodynamics makes you focus on certain areas of your life, it can help you recognize maladaptive behavior patterns and come up with new ways to react to things. Short-term psychodynamics is often used to treat emotional phobias.

3. Gestalt therapy

Gestalt psychotherapy teaches that everyone has unique perspectives on their experiences. This type of therapy can make you feel validated. It is meant to make your responses and emotions more consistent with one another, which will help you better integrate the different aspects of your life. Gestalt therapy can help provide relief of symptoms if you have anxiety or relationship problems.

Benefits of short-term therapy

Short-term therapy can be used to treat issues such as anxiety, depression, grief, relationship issues, stress, and substance abuse disorders.

In some cases, short-term therapy may be more effective than long-term therapy. Participants in a 2006 study showed steady and clinically significant improvement of 88% after a single session, but the improvement rate went down to 62% after 12 sessions (American Psychological Association). The researchers believed this was because people tend to discontinue therapy once their condition has improved to a certain degree.