About Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy
On this page:
- What is psychoanalytic psychotherapy?
- What happens in therapy?
- Who can therapy help?
- How will I know if this is the right therapy for me?
- How long does therapy take?
- What happens when I first contact a therapist?
- What training have therapists had?
- How much does therapy cost?
- How can I find a therapist through SIP?
What is psychoanalytic psychotherapy?
Psychoanalytic psychotherapy is a talking therapy. It may help you reduce your problems, enrich your understanding of yourself, and live a fulfilling life with meaningful relationships.
This type of therapy is based on the theories and practices of psychoanalysis and analytical psychology. Psychoanalysis and analytical psychology are closely related studies, originating in the ideas of Freud and Jung. Nowadays they are also heavily influenced by modern thinkers, researchers, and therapists.
Therapy is based on helping you become aware of previously unconscious conflicts, and deep-seated reactions to other people and to yourself. These conflicts and reactions often stem from earlier experiences, including those which date back to your childhood.
What happens in therapy?
You will meet your therapist in a room where disturbances are kept to a minimum.
The therapist does not give advice – instead they help you explore your unconscious impulses. You are encouraged to talk as freely as you can, letting your mind associate to what you have already said. You can talk about experiences, dreams, fantasies, wishes, anxieties, feelings, thoughts and memories. Your therapist will listen carefully to what you say, and how you say it. They will try and understand the underlying forces in your mind that make you react as you do. Your therapist will feed back their understanding to you. Your therapist is likely to pay particular attention to the relationship that grows up between the two of you, because this helps you learn how your relationships function.
You will normally attend therapy at a regular time, at least weekly. Psychoanalytic psychotherapy focuses on a deep internal change, and this is often made easier by frequent sessions, so many people attend therapy 2-5 times a week. The frequency that you attend will depend on your wishes, your therapist's availability, and the frequency that you both judge will benefit you.
Sessions normally last 50 minutes.
Who can therapy help?
Psychoanalytic psychotherapy can help with difficulties such as:
- depression; feeling empty or listless; feeling sad; feeling unsatisfied
- anxiety; finding it hard to cope; stress; panic attacks
- having difficulties in relating, eg being shy and lacking confidence, chronic anger or aggression, passivity, or even if your relationships continually fail but you don't know why
- finding it hard to cope with a bereavement, loss, illness, trauma, or life change
- sexual problems of an emotional nature; sexual identity
- eating problems, eg anorexia, bulimia, compulsive eating
- where your past troubles you, eg if you were abused
The list above is not exhaustive. Many problems are caused by an underlying emotional conflict, and psychoanalytic psychotherapy may help you by addressing the underlying issue. For example, problems with alcohol or drugs, or obsessive behaviour, can often be addressed in therapy by exploring the unconscious reasons for the problem.
You can also come to therapy as a journey in self discovery, without having a particular problem you wish to work on.
People who benefit most from psychoanalytic psychotherapy are usually those who want to understand themselves better and who have the motivation to commit to the process, even when it involves facing emotional pain.
How will I know if this is the right therapy for me?
You can contact a therapist and arrange an initial assessment. The therapist will make a judgement about whether this therapy is suitable for you. In the assessment, you will also get a sense of what therapy is like, which will help you decide whether to continue.
How long does therapy take?
There is no single simple answer to this question. It is unlikely to take less than two years and may well take longer. It depends a lot on the nature of the difficulties you have and how comfortable you are with change. It may also depend on your ability to attend two, three, or more times a week.
What happens when I first contact a therapist?
Often the easiest way to contact your prospective therapist is by phone. Your therapist will usually check that it is psychoanalytic psychotherapy that you are looking for. If so, and if they can see you, they will make an appointment for you to see them for a consultation.
The consultation may be 50 minutes, but some therapists will ask to see you longer for the first appointment.
During the consultation, you can tell the therapist why you are wanting therapy. You may find that the therapist just lets you talk freely – the therapist is listening to see what comes to your mind as the session progresses. Other therapists will ask several questions in an initial assessment, so they can hear about your background. Whatever their approach, the therapist is trying to ensure that this type of therapy is right for you, and start the therapeutic process for you.
The therapist may offer to see you themselves, or they may try to arrange for you to see another psychoanalytic psychotherapist in the area. Otherwise, they may suggest a different form of help is more suitable.
What training have therapists had?
Psychoanalytic psychotherapists undergo a rigorous post-graduate training of at least four years. Most therapists will have a background in the health services, psychology or social work, and will have relevant experience in the mental health field. The training includes a solid grounding in psychoanalytic theory and individual supervision with a senior practitioner for a number of training cases. All trainees also have their own personal therapy with a qualified and experienced Training Psychotherapist.
How much does therapy cost?
Each therapist has their own scale of fees. The full fee is usually between £35-60 a session. Many psychoanalytic psychotherapists offer a limited number of places at a lower fee.
Low cost therapy (£10 a session or less) may be available with a therapist in training. Trainee therapists already have a substantial understanding of the work, and they receive supervision. For the low cost scheme you need to commit to therapy at three times a week for at least two years. If you are interested in the low cost scheme, please contact our Administrator to see if this is currently available.
How can I find a therapist through SIP?
SIP has many psychoanalytic psychotherapists in Bristol, Bath, and Cheltenham. We also have psychotherapists in the counties of Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, Wiltshire, Somerset, Oxfordshire, Devon, Dorset, Cardiff, Gwent, and Swansea.
Contact our administrator, and she will investigate whether a therapist can see you for a consultation. If so, she will give you the therapist's phone number. Contact details for our Administrator:
Telephone: 0117 923 2354. Please be prepared to leave a message on the answer machine if the Administrator is not available to take your call.
Email: enquiries@sipsychotherapy.org