If you want help managing anxiety, depression, or another mental health issue but don’t know where to begin, you’re not alone. Most people start therapy without knowing the difference between one approach and the next. There are many types of psychotherapy, and no single type is right for everyone.
At Manhattan Mental Health Counseling, we match you with a therapist and an approach based on your goals, not a one-size-fits-all method. Below is a plain-language guide to the most widely practiced forms of psychotherapy, what each one does, and who it tends to help, so you can walk into your first session knowing what to ask for.
What Is Psychotherapy?
Psychotherapy, also called talk therapy, is the treatment of emotional and mental health difficulties by talking with a trained therapist. Different types of psychotherapy use different methods, but they share one goal: to help you understand what you are experiencing and build the skills, insight, or relief you came in for. The main types differ in what they focus on. Some target your current thoughts and behaviors, some explore your past, and some center on your growth as a whole person.
Types of Psychotherapy at a Glance
| Therapy Type | What It Focuses On | Often Used To Help With | Typical Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) | Changing unhelpful thought and behavior patterns in the present | Anxiety, depression, stress, phobias, habits | Shorter-term, often 12 to 20 sessions |
| Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) | Building emotion-regulation and distress-tolerance skills | Intense emotions, self-harm urges, borderline personality disorder | Longer, often several months to a year or more |
| Psychodynamic Therapy | Exploring how past experiences and unconscious patterns shape the present | Depression, recurring relationship patterns, self-understanding | Open-ended; can be months to years |
| Humanistic/Experiential Therapy | Whole-person growth, self-acceptance, and self-actualization | Low self-esteem, anxiety, depression, personal growth | Varies with goals |
| Gestalt Therapy | Present-moment awareness of feelings and experience | Self-awareness, emotional processing | Varies |
| Person-Centered Therapy | Non-directive, client-led exploration with empathy and acceptance | Self-discovery, identity, building self-trust | Varies |
What Is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)?
CBT is a structured, present-focused therapy that helps you identify and change the unhelpful thought and behavior patterns driving anxiety, low mood, and stress. It is one of the most researched approaches and is often shorter-term, with clear goals and between-session practice.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is a short-term, goal-oriented therapy that focuses on the link between our thoughts (cognition) and our actions (behavior). It is intended to help people change thought patterns that cause unhealthy, unproductive, or incapacitating behavior.
Psychotherapists often use this approach with people suffering from anxiety, depression, stress, or phobias. It’s also popular among people seeking to overcome harmful habits and addictions, such as smoking, overeating, or gambling.
During CBT sessions, you work with your therapist to learn how to recognize persistent negative thoughts or beliefs and respond to them more productively. For example, if you have the habit of thinking: “I’m terrible at everything” whenever you make a mistake, CBT is designed to help you notice this thought, identify alternative thoughts (e.g., “Mistakes don’t make me terrible; they make me human”), and choose a more realistic way to view the situation (e.g., “Although I made this mistake, I do many things correctly and now I have learned from this error”). It’s believed that making these positive shifts in your thoughts will lead to a positive change in your behavior.
Note that CBT does have a homework component—follow up occurs during sessions.
What Is Psychodynamic Therapy?
Psychodynamic therapy explores how your past experiences and unconscious patterns shape the way you think, feel, and relate today. It uses the relationship with your therapist to surface those patterns, and it tends to be a longer-term approach than CBT, with the goal of lasting self-understanding rather than a quick symptom fix.
Psychodynamic therapy emphasizes how certain life events and relationships, both past and present, affect your current feelings, relationships, and choices. Its goal is to help you acknowledge and understand negative feelings and repressed emotions so you can resolve internal psychological conflicts, and improve life experiences, self-esteem, and relationships. This approach is a popular treatment for people who are depressed.
A psychodynamic therapist will encourage you to speak openly about a range of issues to help you to uncover different memories, experiences, or dreams that helped shape your life. In particular, you will explore the reasons why you have taken certain adverse decisions or actions in the past to help you avoid making similar unfavorable choices in the future. You can also use this new understanding of yourself to resolve current problematic situations and enhance relationships.
Psychodynamic therapy may sometimes be an effective short-term therapy, but it often takes a year or longer to obtain enduring benefits.
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What Is Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)?
DBT is a form of CBT built for people who feel emotions very intensely. It teaches concrete skills in four areas, mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness, and was first developed to treat borderline personality disorder. Where CBT works mainly on changing thoughts, DBT pairs change with acceptance and self-validation.
Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) treatment is a form of cognitive behavior therapy. Its primary aim is to give people the skills to regulate their emotions, handle stress in a healthy manner, and improve relationships, and live mindfully. Originally developed to treat people with borderline personality disorder, DBT is now used to treat a variety of mental conditions and is believed to be especially helpful for people with seemingly uncontrollable, intense negative emotions or those who may incline toward self-harm.
DBT differs from CBT in that it teaches you that your experiences are real and shows how to accept yourself, even with your unique challenges and life experiences. The treatment usually consists of both one-on-one sessions with a psychotherapist and therapist-led group sessions where the participants develop and practice skills and behaviors needed for a more manageable daily life. In both situations, DBT patients learn how to label emotions, handle angry feelings and navigate conflict without giving into impulsive tendencies, and develop awareness of their feelings during the present moment.
Like CBT, DBT also has a homework component. DBT is ideally done both in groups and in individual sessions simultaneously. People generally find this mixture quite helpful.
What Is Humanistic/Experiential Therapy?
Humanistic and experiential therapies focus on you as a whole person rather than on a single diagnosis. The therapist offers empathy, acceptance, and what is called unconditional positive regard, and the work is often client-led, aimed at self-acceptance, personal growth, and living more in line with who you are. Gestalt therapy and person-centered therapy both fall under this approach.
Unlike behavioral-based therapies, humanistic/experiential therapy focuses on a person’s individual nature rather than the collection of behaviors that make up a specific psychological category. The therapy’s holistic approach emphasizes the whole person, especially their positive behaviors and their ability to grow, heal and find self-actualization through self-exploration. People with depression, anxiety and panic disorders, and low self-esteem often seek this approach.
Humanistic therapy consists of two popular techniques: Gestalt therapy and client-centered therapy. Gestalt therapy helps people to center on “here and now” feelings and experiences rather than their perception of the root causes of those feelings. Your therapist will help you explore feelings and experiences through creative and experiential techniques, such as guided re-enactments, role-playing, exaggerated movement, and other exercises. The goal is to arouse emotions in different situations, allowing the person being treated to become aware of and understand those emotions as they happen.
Client-or person-centered therapy centers on the idea that people are capable of deciding for themselves the psychological areas they want to explore and know best how to go about it. Known as a “non-directive” form of therapy, the therapist does not guide the client toward any particular direction or outcome but creates a supportive environment for clients as they investigate their identity, feelings, experiences or emotions. You can expect your therapist to listen to your point of view with empathy, warmth, respect, and non-judgment, and to encourage your growth and self-realization.
How Do I Choose the Right Type of Therapy?
There is no single best type of psychotherapy. The right approach depends on what you want help with, how you like to work, and your fit with the therapist. A practical way to start: name the problem, then consider the approach that targets it most directly.
- If you want structured tools for anxiety, low mood, or stress, CBT is a strong, well-researched starting point. See our anxiety therapists in New York and depression therapists in New York.
- If your emotions feel overwhelming or hard to regulate, a skills-based approach like DBT may fit better.
- If you keep repeating the same relationship or self-worth patterns and want to understand why, psychodynamic therapy gives you room to go deeper over time.
- If you want a space to grow and feel accepted as you are, a humanistic or experiential approach may suit you.
Many therapists blend methods, so the relationship often matters as much as the label. If you are not sure where to start, our guide to what kind of therapist you need can help. At MMHC, a clinician (not an algorithm) matches you to the right therapist and approach, and you can rematch if the fit is wrong.
Frequently Asked Questions About Types of Psychotherapy
What are the main types of psychotherapy?
The most widely practiced types are Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Psychodynamic Therapy, and Humanistic or Experiential Therapy, which includes Gestalt and person-centered approaches. CBT and DBT focus on present thoughts, behaviors, and skills; psychodynamic therapy explores the past; humanistic therapy centers on whole-person growth. No single type is right for everyone.
What is the difference between CBT and DBT?
Both are structured and skills-based, and DBT is actually a form of CBT. The difference is focus. CBT works mainly on identifying and changing unhelpful thoughts and behaviors and is often shorter-term. DBT was built for people who feel emotions very intensely, and it adds acceptance and self-validation alongside change, with skills in mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and relationships. DBT is usually the longer of the two.
What is psychodynamic therapy in simple terms?
Psychodynamic therapy is talk therapy that looks at how your past experiences and unconscious patterns shape how you think, feel, and relate today. Instead of targeting one symptom, it helps you understand the deeper patterns behind recurring problems, which is why it tends to take longer than CBT.
Which type of therapy is most effective?
There is no single most effective therapy. The best approach depends on your goals, your symptoms, and your fit with the therapist. CBT is strongly evidence-based for anxiety and depression, DBT is well suited to intense emotions and self-harm urges, and psychodynamic therapy fits people who want to explore deeper patterns over time. Fit with the therapist often matters as much as the method.
How do I know which type of psychotherapy is right for me?
Start by naming what you want help with, then talk with a therapist who can recommend an approach based on your needs. Many therapists combine methods, so you do not have to choose a single label up front. At MMHC, a clinician matches you to a therapist and approach based on your goals, and you can rematch if the fit is not right.
How long does psychotherapy take?
It depends on the approach and the goal. Many people notice improvement within 8 to 12 sessions. CBT is often shorter-term, frequently 12 to 20 sessions, while DBT and psychodynamic therapy tend to run longer, from several months to a year or more, especially for complex or long-standing issues.
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The therapists at Manhattan Mental Health Counseling are caring, compassionate and well-trained in a variety of therapeutic skills and modalities. We are in-network with the following insurance plans: Aetna, Cigna, United Healthcare and Healthfirst. Our therapists specialize in anxiety, depression, anger management, grief, trauma, life transitions, family issues, couple’s counseling, OCD, career counseling, women psychological issues, including post-natal depression, addictions among others. We provide online therapy from the comfort of your own home.
Take a look at our Meet the Team page to see if you feel drawn to any one of our therapists.
Continue your search by reading this post which answers the question what kind of therapist do I need?
Clinically reviewed by Natalie Buchwald, LMHC-D