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Types of therapy

What each one is, in a sentence or two. Open one to see therapists on Wellzy who offer it.

  • Acceptance and Commitment (ACT)Helps people make room for difficult thoughts and feelings instead of fighting them, and commit to actions that fit what matters to them.
  • AdlerianBased on Alfred Adler's ideas. Looks at a person's goals, sense of belonging and early family experiences, and encourages connection with others.
  • AEDPAccelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy. Works closely with emotions, and with the experience of change itself, in a warm and engaged relationship with the therapist.
  • Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA)Uses principles of learning and reinforcement to build skills and change behavior. Most often used with autistic children.
  • Art TherapyUses drawing, painting or other art-making to express and explore feelings, with a therapist trained in art therapy. No artistic skill is needed.
  • Attachment-basedLooks at early bonds with caregivers and how they shape relationships and emotions now, and works toward a greater sense of safety and connection.
  • BiofeedbackUses sensors to show body signals such as heart rate, breathing or muscle tension as they happen, so a person can learn to change them, for example to manage stress.
  • BrainspottingA newer trauma therapy that uses where a person looks, held at fixed points, to help reach and process distressing feelings.
  • Christian CounselingCounseling that brings Christian faith, scripture or prayer into therapy, for people who want their beliefs to be part of the work.
  • Clinical Supervision and Licensed SupervisorsNot a therapy for clients: this therapist supervises other clinicians, for example those working toward their license.
  • CoachingGoal-focused work on the present and future, such as career, performance or life changes, rather than treatment of a mental health condition.
  • Cognitive Behavioral (CBT)A structured, practical therapy that looks at how thoughts, feelings and actions affect each other, and teaches skills for changing unhelpful thinking and habits.
  • Cognitive Processing (CPT)A structured therapy for PTSD that helps people examine and change beliefs about themselves and the world that formed after a trauma.
  • Compassion FocusedHelps people who are hard on themselves to build warmth and compassion toward themselves, as a counterweight to shame and self-criticism.
  • Culturally SensitiveTakes a person's culture, identity, background and values into account, and shapes the work so it fits their life.
  • Dialectical Behavior (DBT)A skills-based therapy grown out of CBT. Teaches ways to manage intense emotions, get through crises, stay present and handle relationships.
  • EclecticUses techniques from several approaches, chosen to suit the person and the problem rather than following one model.
  • EMDREye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. A structured trauma therapy in which a person recalls distressing memories while following side-to-side eye movements or taps.
  • Emotionally FocusedTreats emotions as a guide to change. Often used with couples, to understand patterns of conflict and rebuild a secure bond.
  • ExistentialExplores life's big questions, such as meaning, freedom, choice, loneliness and death, and how they connect to a person's struggles.
  • Experiential TherapyUses activities such as role-play, movement, art or guided imagery to work through feelings in the moment, not only to talk about them.
  • Exposure Response Prevention (ERP)The main behavioral therapy for OCD: gradually facing feared situations or thoughts while resisting the urge to carry out compulsions.
  • Expressive ArtsUses several creative forms, such as art, music, movement, writing or drama, to explore feelings and experiences.
  • Family / MaritalTherapy with couples or families together, focused on communication, conflict and the patterns between people.
  • Family SystemsSees a person as part of their family as a whole, and explores roles, patterns and communication across the family rather than one person's problems alone.
  • FeministConsiders how gender, power and social context affect a person's life and well-being, and aims for an equal relationship between client and therapist.
  • Forensic PsychologyPsychology applied to legal matters, such as evaluations for courts, custody or criminal cases.
  • GestaltFocuses on the here and now, and on noticing what a person is feeling and doing in the moment, often through experiments such as role-play.
  • Gottman MethodA couples therapy built on research into what makes relationships last. Works on friendship, handling conflict and shared meaning.
  • HumanisticA family of approaches, including person-centered and Gestalt therapy, that emphasize growth, self-awareness and a person's capacity to choose.
  • HypnotherapyUses guided relaxation and focused attention (hypnosis) to help with things such as anxiety, pain, sleep or habits like smoking.
  • ImagoA couples therapy that uses structured conversations to help partners see how childhood experiences shape their conflicts, and to reconnect.
  • IntegrativeCombines more than one therapy approach, fitted to the person's needs.
  • Internal Family Systems (IFS)Sees the mind as made of different 'parts', and helps people understand and care for them from a calm, compassionate core 'Self'.
  • InterpersonalA structured, time-limited therapy focused on relationships and life events, such as conflict, loss or big role changes, and how they affect mood.
  • InterventionHelp planning and running an intervention, where family and friends come together to encourage someone, often with an addiction, to accept treatment.
  • JungianBased on Carl Jung's ideas. Explores dreams, symbols and the unconscious to help a person become more whole.
  • Ketamine-AssistedTherapy sessions that take place alongside ketamine treatment given and supervised by a medical provider.
  • Mindfulness-Based (MBCT)Combines mindfulness practice, paying attention to the present moment without judgment, with ideas from cognitive therapy.
  • Motivational InterviewingA collaborative style of conversation that helps people explore mixed feelings about a change and find their own reasons to make it.
  • MulticulturalRecognizes how culture, race, ethnicity and other identities shape experience, and makes them part of the work.
  • NarrativeHelps people separate themselves from their problems and retell the stories they hold about their lives in ways that feel truer and more helpful.
  • Parent-Child Interaction (PCIT)A therapy for young children's behavior in which the therapist coaches the parent live, often through an earpiece, while they play together.
  • Person-CenteredA warm, non-directive approach: the therapist listens with empathy and without judgment, and trusts the person to find their own direction.
  • Play TherapyUses play, toys and games to help children express feelings and work through problems in a way that suits their age.
  • Positive PsychologyFocuses on well-being, strengths, gratitude and what makes life fulfilling, alongside working through difficulties.
  • Prolonged Exposure TherapyA structured therapy for PTSD that helps people gradually approach trauma-related memories and situations they have been avoiding.
  • PsychoanalyticThe tradition that began with Freud. Explores unconscious thoughts and feelings, often through free association, sometimes with several sessions a week.
  • PsychodynamicExplores how past experiences, relationships and feelings outside awareness shape how a person thinks and acts today.
  • Psychological Testing and EvaluationFormal assessment with standardized tests, for example for ADHD, learning differences or autism, usually ending in a written report.
  • Rational Emotive Behavior (REBT)A form of cognitive therapy that finds rigid beliefs, such as 'I must be perfect', and replaces them with more flexible ones.
  • Reality TherapyFocuses on present choices and behavior, and on meeting needs such as connection and control in responsible ways.
  • RelationalSees relationships as central to well-being. The relationship with the therapist is used to understand and change patterns in other relationships.
  • SandplayThe person builds scenes in a tray of sand with small figures, as a way to express what is hard to put into words. Used with children and adults.
  • Solution Focused Brief (SFBT)A short-term, goal-focused approach that spends less time on problems and more on what already works and the small steps toward what the person wants.
  • SomaticBody-focused therapy that pays attention to physical sensations, posture and breathing, on the view that stress and trauma are held in the body as well as the mind.
  • Strength-BasedFocuses on the strengths, skills and resources a person already has, and builds on them to meet challenges.
  • Structural Family TherapyLooks at how a family is organized, its roles, rules and boundaries, and helps reshape patterns that cause problems.
  • TranspersonalIncludes spiritual experience, such as meditation or a sense of connection beyond the self, as part of therapy.
  • Trauma FocusedTherapy for people affected by trauma. Puts safety and pacing first, and helps process painful memories so they have less hold on daily life.