Method
Intensive short-term dynamic psychotherapy (ISTDP)
Working directly with feelings, and with the defences that hold them back.
- What is it?
- ISTDP was developed by the psychiatrist Habib Davanloo. It's a psychodynamic method: it starts from the idea that feelings we've learned to avoid, often in early relationships, can show up as anxiety, tension in the body, depression or problems in relationships.
- How we work
- Sessions are active and focused. We pay close attention to what happens in the moment: how anxiety shows up in your body, and the ways you might push feelings away. The aim is for you to be able to feel and use your emotions, rather than be run by them.
- When it can help
- It's often used for anxiety, depression, physical symptoms linked to stress, and long-standing patterns in relationships.