Understanding therapy types can help you find the right support for your mental health. In fact, choosing the right approach can make a significant difference in outcomes. At Hively Health, we offer a range of proven therapies, each supported by scientific evidence and tailored to meet individual needs and therapy goals.
Psychological therapy is highly individualised and may involve a single therapeutic approach or a combination of several, depending on what best suits your needs. This guide outlines the different kinds of therapy our psychologists use, how they work, and how they can support you in navigating mental health challenges with confidence.
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
CBT, or Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, is a type of talk therapy that helps individuals learn how their thoughts, feelings and behaviours are connected. This helps them in changing unhelpful thought patterns. It’s a goal-oriented and structured approach that can be used to treat a variety of mental health conditions and improve overall well-being. CBT is one of the most widely used types of therapy in modern psychology.
Key aspects of CBT:
- Focus on present problems: CBT primarily addresses current difficulties rather than delving deeply into past experiences.
- Identifying negative thoughts and behaviours: It helps individuals recognise and challenge negative thought patterns and behaviours that contribute to problems
- Developing coping strategies: CBT equips individuals with practical tools and techniques to manage challenges and improve their ability to cope.
- Structured and time-limited: Many psychologists deliver CBT in shorter, structured formats compared to other forms of therapy.
- Collaboration with a therapist: CBT involves working with a trained professional to identify goals and develop strategies.
How CBT works:
CBT is based on the idea that our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are interconnected. Unhelpful thoughts can lead to negative emotions and behaviors, and vice versa. By identifying and changing these patterns, CBT aims to improve overall well-being.
What CBT can help with:
CBT is used to treat a wide range of mental health conditions, including, but not limited to:
- Depression and anxiety: CBT can be highly effective in managing symptoms of depression and anxiety disorders.
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD): CBT-based therapies, such as Prolonged Exposure therapy and Cognitive Processing Therapy, are commonly used to treat PTSD.
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD): Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), a CBT technique, is a gold standard treatment for OCD.
- Eating disorders: CBT can help individuals manage disordered eating patterns and behaviors.
- Substance abuse: CBT can be used to address addiction and relapse prevention.
- Chronic pain: CBT can help individuals cope with chronic pain and improve their quality of life.
Motivational Interviewing
Motivational interviewing is a person-centred counselling approach, and one of the therapy types psychologists and social workers use that focuses on empowering change through self-motivation. It focuses on building positive emotions such as interest, hope and inspiration, while encouraging individuals to confidently take charge of their own journey. The main goal is to support self-efficacy for change, this is the way we think, feel and act in relation to our goals and commitment. This helps people express their own reasons for change.
The core idea is that practitioners avoid telling you what to do and seek to understand while listening with empathy to their values, needs abilities and motivations, also barriers to change. Practitioners work to empower the person to set achievable goals and to identify techniques to overcome barriers.
Stages of Change in Motivational Interviewing
There are different stages of change, and while it does not always follow the step-by-step in order, practitioners can tailor the type of help they provide based on these stages.
- Precontemplation: no intention of changing behaviour
- Contemplation: aware that a problem exists, but not committed to action
- Preparation: intends to act soon.
- Action: Active modification of behaviour
- Maintenance: sustaining the change, where new behaviour replaces old ones
- Relapse: fall back into old patterns of behaviour, this is an opportunity for learning and retrying.
Motivational interviewing has been successfully used in:
- Addiction treatment: Supported for various addictive behaviors (except smoking) (Hettema et al., 2005).
- Chronic health management: Helps improve treatment adherence (Hettema et al., 2005).
- Mental health therapy: Assists in overcoming resistance to therapy
- Weight management and lifestyle change: Encourages healthier habits (Lundahl et al., 2013).
- Patient engagement in medical settings: Improves doctor-patient communication and adherence to medical advice (Lundahl et al., 2013).
Motivational interviewing is often used together with other treatments such as CBT, ACT, and DBT. By focusing on listening, empathy, and self-empowerment, practitioners can help build motivation and confidence needed to make lasting positive changes. It is all about working together to make changes that feel right. Whether a person is thinking about change or already working on it, MI can help build motivation and confidence for long-term success.
References
Hettema, J., Steele, J., & Miller, W. R. (2005). Motivational Interviewing. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 1(1), 91–111. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.clinpsy.1.102803.143833
Lundahl, B., Moleni, T., Burke, B. L., Butters, R., Tollefson, D., Butler, C., & Rollnick, S. (2013). Motivational Interviewing in Medical Care settings: a Systematic Review and meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. Patient Education and Counseling, 93(2), 157–168. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pec.2013.07.012
Compassion Focused Therapy
Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT) was designed to help people who are too self-critical, feel shame, and experience strong emotional ups and downs, which are quite common in mood and anxiety disorders.
CFT can help to develop a kinder, more understanding relationship with yourself. Psychologists help you understand your motivations and emotions which influence our goals and how we respond to success or setbacks. The aim of this type of therapy is to replace negative feelings of hostility and insecurity with compassion and understanding.
Definition: Compassion means being able to notice pain or suffering in yourself or others, while being committed to ease or prevent that suffering.
Compassion tends to grow when people feel connected, trust others, and experience empathy. But feelings such as stress, fear, a lack of time or feeling overwhelmed can make it harder for us to show compassion- especially to ourselves.
Practicing compassion can help with:
- Mental health and mood
- Handling and understanding strong emotions
- Improving relationships and social connections
- Parenting or caregiving
- Fear of rejection and self-worth
How Compassion Focused Therapy Works
CFT is based on the idea that as humans we have 3 emotional regulation systems:
- A threat system- related to fear and danger
- A drive system- related to pursuing and achieving goals
- Soothing and connection system- related to safety, calm and connection
These three systems help balance each other, but if we engage in too much self-criticism after a step back, or something we classify as a failure, it can unbalance our emotional regulation system. This means that we can get stuck, and are not able to feel calm, safe or connected, while drawing up anxious or angry feelings about not achieving our goals. Another issue is that we can struggle with the ability to be kind to ourselves or feel kindness from others. When these systems are balanced it can increase positive feelings such as feeling safe, happy or excited.
This therapy type uses mindfulness and acceptance tools to help understand and balance emotions and experiences, to then help to build resilience, learn to treat yourself kindly and with care, and strengthen your connection with others.
Who might benefit from this type of therapy?
Among the various therapy types, CFT is particularly helpful for:
- Those who struggle with shame, self-criticism, low self-esteem
- Individuals living with anxiety, depression, PTSD or other mood disorders
- Anybody who finds it hard to connect with others or maintain healthy relationships
References
Gilbert, P. (2014). The origins and nature of compassion focused therapy. British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 53(1), 6–41.
Link: https://self-compassion.org/wp-content/uploads/publications/GilbertCFT.pdf
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy is one of the more unique therapy types that builds psychological flexibility. It aims to help you to take meaningful action towards the life that you want and things that are important to you. Instead of trying to ignore difficult thoughts or feelings, ACT teaches that suffering and negative feelings are a natural part of being human, they are unavoidable, temporary and often out of your control.
Through psychological flexibility, you can adapt to these challenges instead of trying to ignore or control them. It is about making space for these experiences, so they no longer hold you back. ACT can help you stay present and focus on the things you truly value in life, for example, relationships, meaningful work and personal growth. As a result, people often experience greater clarity and emotional resilience.
ACT and Mindfulness in Everyday Life
ACT incorporates mindfulness skills, helping you stay grounded in the present moment and develop a healthier relationship with your inner experiences. When you learn to accept and observe your thoughts and emotions without judgment, they often lose their grip on you, allowing for clarity, calm, and meaningful action.
ACT has 6 main skills designed to help improve your coping skills and live authentically.
- Acceptance
Learning to open to difficult thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations without trying to control or avoid them. This skill helps you face discomfort with compassion and courage, especially when they come up when you are taking meaningful action.
- Thought Diffusion
Creating distance from unhelpful thoughts so that they don’t dictate your behaviour. This involves noticing thoughts as they are, just thoughts. Instead of seeing them as absolute truths.
- Contact with the present moment
Staying grounded, in the present, without judgement. By using the 5 senses ad tuning into what is happening, you can build awareness. You can learn to acknowledge when you might be feeling sad, angry, stressed, but without judgement, you can return your attention to the world around you.
- Values
Clarifying what truly matters to you, including hopes, priorities, and principles. Values give direction and meaning to your life, helping you stay connected to what’s most important.
- Committed action
Taking intentional steps that align with your values. This means making choices that reflect who you want to be, even when those choices feel difficult or uncomfortable.
- Flexibility or Self-as-context
Developing a broader perspective on your inner experiences. Instead of being overwhelmed by your thoughts or emotions, you learn to observe them with openness, making space to respond more flexibly and purposefully.
How ACT can be used
ACT is an effective in treating a wide range of mental health conditions such as, depression, anxiety disorders, psychosis, chronic pain, and OCD. It also helps to support medical diagnoses, smoking reduction/weight loss, and other issues such as stigma, parenting stress, work performance or prejudice and more.
Because ACT therapy is focused on helping you build skills, mainly psychological flexibility, not just treating one specific symptom or disorder, it is considered ‘transdiagnostic’ approach. The skills learnt in ACT are helpful to many aspects of life and aim to set you up for a more meaningful and fulfilling life, no matter what difficulties you’re facing. Among therapy types, ACT stands out for its emphasis on values-based living and long-term psychological flexibility.
References
Dindo, L., Van Liew, J. R., & Arch, J. J. (2017). Acceptance and Commitment Therapy: A Transdiagnostic Behavioral Intervention for Mental Health and Medical Conditions. Neurotherapeutics, 14(3), 546–553. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13311-017-0521-3
Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR)
EMDR is a type of psychotherapy that is used to treat emotional distress caused by trauma or difficult memories. Our experienced psychologist Alana Hawkins is trained in EMDR and available to provide this support to you or your loved ones.
Researchers originally developed EMDR to treat posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Some evidence suggests that it can be helpful in treating phobias and test anxiety (Cujipers et al., 2020).
References
Cujipers et al., 2020
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/16506073.2019.1703801#abstract
Find the Right Therapy Type for Your Needs
Our experienced psychologists at Hively Health provide empathetic and caring psychological therapy and assessments. If you’re curious about different therapy types and how they can help, reach out to our caring team today.
