Does psychoanalytic therapy really work? Psychoanalytic therapy is a type of therapy used in the field of psychiatry and psychology that is based upon the initiated theories of Sigmund Freud, who is considered one of the forefathers of psychology and the founder of psychoanalysis. This treatment explores how the unconscious part of our minds can influence our behaviors and thoughts, and aims to offer understanding and resolution of psychological issues to the people who seek therapy. Basing from this premise, the therapy works by analyzing information from the patient than can potentially affect how he/she is currently behaving or thinking. Does this method really work? We need to first go over the facts of this therapy. Experiences, particularly from early childhood, can give important information in psychoanalytic therapy in order to see if these events have affected the person’s life, or potentially contributed to current concerns. This form of therapy is considered a longterm method that can continue for weeks, months or even years depending on the complexity of the concern being explored. So how does psychoanalytic therapy work? Psychoanalytic therapy is driven by insight and thus looks to encourage change in the individual by helping them to understand their past and how certain events from their early life could be affecting their current condition. There are varying types of sessions according to the stage you currently belong to, in the course of your therapy. In all these sessions, most of the time will be spent by individuals talking freely to their therapist in a safe, non-judgmental environment. The therapist, also called the psychoanalyst (a psychologist or a psychiatrist), will listen to the concerns of the individual and look out for information, patterns or certain events that may have significance. Going back to the earlier discussion, in this type of therapy it is believed that unconscious feelings, thoughts, desires and childhood events play a key role in mental concerns. There are several recent studies in the field of psychology that support the efficacy of psychoanalytic therapy regardless of the term of therapy (short term: less than 40 hours, averaging 30.7 sessions; long term: more than 40 hours, averaging 50 sessions or one year of sessions). Reports have been favorable for short-term and long-term psychoanalytic therapies in several recent studies (American Journal of Psychiatry 2003; Archives of General Psychiatry 2004; Cochrane Library 2006). Even more recent studies find support of the enduring and long term increase in benefits of psychoanalytic/psychodynamic therapy (meta-analysis reports in Journal of the American Medical Association 2008 and Harvard Review of Psychiatry 2009). All these data can be found in the American Psychologist journal article by Jonathan Shedler (2010). A point we should remember however, is that the efficacy of a mental/behavioral health therapy depends upon the patient and the therapist. The patient’s degree of cooperation and willingness to undergo therapy will be valuable in determining if the therapy will be a success or not. On the part of therapist, he/she will carefully study and review the information provided by the patient and the tests he/she has administered to the patient and weigh the options for which therapy might work best. To ensure the success of a psychological treatment, including the psychoanalytic therapy, both the patient and the therapist will decide on the best program to follow in the treatment. Thus, aside from statistical
data or information from recent studies, the persons involved in the therapy are key to its efficacy and success.