Psychoanalytic therapy, or psychoanalysis, is based on the work of Sigmund Freud and is one of the most well-known therapeutic practices. A psychoanalytic approach to therapy looks at how the unconscious mind influences a person’s behaviors, thoughts and feelings. Psychoanalytic therapy is founded on the belief that a person’s problems can be related to repressed conflicts, for example unresolved childhood issues or a suppressed trauma.
How does Psychoanalytic Therapy work and how can it help?
The goal of psychoanalytic therapy is to bring unconscious conflicts into the conscious mind, so that the client can face and deal with them. Some of the most common problems treated with psychoanalysis include anxiety, depression, fears and phobias, compulsions, obsessions, relationship problems and sexual dysfunctions.
Psychoanalysis focuses on our unconscious and deep-rooted thoughts. It considers that childhood and past experiences directly influence our current behaviour, thoughts and feelings. Repressed past experiences may manifest as depression or other negative symptoms.
Psychoanalysis is used to help us recognise and understand how unconscious factors affect our current relationships and patterns of behaviour. By using techniques such as dream analysis and free association we can learn how to interpret complex or deeply buried experiences or memories and identify how they may be preventing us from living a fulfilled life.
