Our team has extensive training and experience in delivering a range of psychotherapeutic services. Therapy at PMA is provided either in conjunction with medication management (psychopharmacology) or as a stand-alone treatment. Our doctors strive to create a warm and empathic therapeutic environment where collaboration with our patients is emphasized to maximize the effectiveness of therapy.
We utilize an array of evidence based treatments that are designed to treat a range of psychiatric challenges. Types of psychotherapy include cognitive behavioral, mindfulness-based, behavioral activation, problem solving, interpersonal psychotherapy, brief psychodynamic, and supportive therapy.
The frequency of visits and duration of treatment vary with the goals of treatment. Most patients find that they get the best results by meeting weekly. We customize recommendations to your individual needs.
In addition to individual psychotherapy, we offer couple therapy services at PMA. Couple therapy has been shown by research to be effective in treating a variety of concerns. Common concerns include: communication difficulties, sexual dysfunction, exhausting arguments that seem to repeat themselves (i.e., around finances, parenting, quality time, work, family members, etc.), infidelity, or feeling distant from one another. Many partners struggle to find time to connect with one another when faced with the competing responsibilities of demanding careers, caring for family members, and managing the household. All of these concerns fall under the broad category of relationship distress. To treat relationship distress, we conduct an evidence-based psychotherapy called Cognitive Behavioral Couple Therapy (CBCT), which is designed to address your specific concerns through attending to patterns in your interactions with one another, as well as patterns within each partner’s thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. When you come to PMA for couple therapy, you can expect a thorough assessment of your specific concerns, followed by the development of a structured treatment plan. Couples work with the therapist to shift their communication towards more effective listening, sharing, and collaborative problem-solving.
In addition to couple therapy for relationship distress, we also offer couple-based services for other reasons. For example, some couples feel satisfied in their relationship, but would like to attend short-term counseling prior to marriage or other developmental milestones in order to discuss their expectations, values, and concerns in a therapeutic environment. Other couples may be facing a major life stressor – for example, a health condition, caring for aging family members, career pressures – and would like to learn how to best support one another during times of stress. One partner in the couple might be experiencing depression or anxiety, and the other feels unsure of how to best provide support and may be struggling him or herself. Short-term structured couple therapy can be an excellent tool for enhancing your relationship in the situations described above. Even couples who feel highly satisfied in their relationships can benefit from joint education on how to best communicate and support one another through difficult life challenges, particularly when one or both partners are experiencing chronic physical or mental health conditions.
PMA welcomes couples of diverse backgrounds, including heterosexual and same-sex couples, LGBT couples, interracial couples, couples in which partners are of quite different ages, couples practicing non-monogamy or monogamy, couples in which partners practice different religions or have different cultural backgrounds, or couples in which one partner is transitioning genders. Some couples are particularly vulnerable to societal discrimination or must navigate complex and challenging situations with extended family and in-laws, and these situations can be particularly helpful to discuss within the context of couple therapy.