The following is a list of numerous psychotherapy methods utilised by Akhtar.
Adlerian therapy
Adlerian therapy, or individual psychology, was developed by Alfred Adler, who collaborated with Sigmund Freud. It focuses on how early family experiences shape perceptions and reactions, with internalised beliefs guiding unconscious adult behaviour. The counsellor helps understand actions to find better responses. This supportive therapy benefits individuals, couples, and families, especially for anxiety and antisocial behaviours.
Behavioural therapy
Behavioural therapies are based on the idea that unwanted or unhealthy behaviours are learned responses to past experiences. They concentrate on current issues and aim to help you develop new, more positive behaviours without examining the past. Behavioural therapy often proves effective for compulsive and obsessive behaviours, fears, phobias, and addictions.
Brief therapy
Brief therapy is a short-term approach that emphasises solutions and positive change over exploring past issues. Your therapist helps identify strengths, set goals, and develop plans. It can be effective in three or four sessions.
Coaching
Coaching helps individuals, teams, or groups gain self-awareness, self-management skills, and self-efficacy, enabling them to develop goals and solutions. It’s a conversational, collaborative process that builds on strengths, focusing on making changes in current or future situations. Coaches may follow specific models or combine multiple approaches, including therapeutic methods like person-centred, solution-focused, or CBT.
Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT)
CBT changes thoughts and actions by focusing on present problems and solutions instead of past causes. Our thoughts influence feelings and behaviour; negative thinking causes negative emotions and unhelpful actions. Your therapist helps you recognise and challenge negative thoughts to improve handling situations and behaviour. CBT benefits depression, anxiety, stress, phobias, obsessions, eating disorders, and long-term condition management.
Cognitive therapy
Cognitive therapy is based on the idea that previous experiences can distort your self-view, affecting your attitudes, emotions, and responses to specific situations. It helps you identify, challenge, and change negative mental images of yourself, guiding you toward healthier responses and behaviours. This approach can help pessimistic or depressed individuals adopt a more positive outlook.
Eclectic counselling
An eclectic counsellor uses a range of theories, methods, and practices customised to each client's needs. This approach is founded on the belief that no single theoretical model is universally more effective than others for a particular problem.
Emotionally focused therapy
Emotionally focused therapy is an approach for working with couples, families, and individuals that aims to develop and reinforce secure, resilient relationships. Therapists will help you understand your own and others' emotions, address any insecurities and conflicts, and learn to connect and respond more emotionally.
Existential therapy
Existential psychotherapy explores inner conflict and anxiety about life's ultimate concerns, like death, freedom, isolation, and meaninglessness. It holds that life has no inherent meaning, and individuals must create their own understanding. Counsellors help people face anxiety and negative thoughts, guiding them in ways that allow them to handle life's challenges.
Family therapy
This therapy views the family system and member relationships rather than focusing solely on individuals. It provides a safe space for families to discuss tough thoughts and feelings, helping them understand and appreciate each other’s needs and strengthen bonds. It addresses various family issues and supports personal and relational growth. See also Systemic therapy.
Gestalt therapy
Gestalt, from German for ‘whole’ or ‘pattern’, views the individual as a complete entity within their environment rather than as parts. Practitioners focus on the present moment, thoughts, feelings, and behaviour to understand relationships and situations. This helps foster a positive outlook and initiate change. Gestalt therapy involves acting out scenarios and recalling dreams, effectively treating anxiety, stress, addiction, tension, and depression.
Humanistic therapy
This approach considers the individual as a whole. It encourages reflection on feelings and promotes taking responsibility for thoughts and actions. The emphasis is on personal development and achieving one's full potential rather than on problematic behaviour. Person-centred therapy, Gestalt, existential therapy, solution-focused therapy, and transactional analysis are all humanistic approaches.
Integrative counselling
Integrative counselling looks at the whole person, addressing your mental, physical, and emotional needs. Your therapist will use techniques and tools from different approaches to tailor a plan specifically for you. An integrative counsellor aims to build a trusting and non-judgemental relationship that promotes self-awareness. When you understand the reasons behind your concerns or triggers for your behaviour, you can confidently set goals and adopt new behaviours to improve your quality of life.
Internal Family Systems (IFS)
IFS is an experiential therapy focused on the client’s inner world, grounded in systems theory and the multiplicity of the mind. It sees the individual as a system with multiple parts that role-play to shield the person, alongside a core self that is calm and compassionate. The goal is to help heal wounded parts.
Person-centred therapy
Person-centred therapy is founded on the belief that everyone has the potential and desire for personal growth and change, provided the right conditions are in place. Instead of being seen as the expert guiding the therapy, the counsellor offers unconditional positive regard, empathy, and congruence to help you accept any negative feelings and to develop at your own pace.
Phenomenological therapy
A phenomenological approach examines a person's perception and experience of a situation or event rather than its external reality. A therapist can help you understand why you perceive things this way and support you in finding more helpful ways of thinking and behaving.
Psychoanalysis
This is based on Sigmund Freud's theory that psychological issues stem from the unconscious mind. Past experiences influence thoughts, emotions, and behaviour. The analyst encourages discussing experiences and using techniques such as free association or dream analysis to uncover repressed feelings, helping clients manage negative emotions. It's a lengthy, intense process often used by distressed clients.
Psychodynamic psychotherapy
The psychodynamic approach derives from psychoanalysis but emphasises quick solutions to current issues. It highlights the unconscious and past experiences in shaping behaviour. Therapists foster trust and acceptance, encouraging discussion of childhood relationships. It uses techniques such as free association, interpretation, and transference, in which feelings from past relationships are projected onto the therapist.
Psychosynthesis
Often called the ‘psychology of the soul’, this approach seeks to unite your emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual qualities to encourage personal growth. Psychosynthesis is helpful for those looking for a new, more spiritually oriented view of themselves to enable change and development.
Rational emotive behaviour (REBT)
REBT centres on challenging and disputing irrational beliefs. One of its aims is to confront irrational thought patterns and their associated outcomes. The core principles of REBT can be summarised using the ABC model: Activating events, Beliefs related to these events, and Consequences, which may be positive or negative.
Relationship therapy
Relationship counselling helps those involved to recognise recurring patterns of distress and to understand and manage troublesome differences they are experiencing. The relationship may be between family members, a couple, or even work colleagues.
Solution-focused brief therapy
This therapy promotes positive change instead of dwelling on past issues. Practitioners will help you focus on your strengths, set goals, and explore ways to reach them. Three or four sessions could be beneficial.
Systemic therapy
These therapies aim to alter the transactional patterns of members within a system. Systemic therapy can be used as a general term for family and marital therapy.
Transactional analysis
Transactional analysis is a comprehensive approach that combines aspects of humanistic, cognitive-behavioural, and psychodynamic therapy. It categorises the human personality into three states – Parent, Adult, and Child – which can help you understand how you interact with others. Therapists also explore how your beliefs and interpretations of the world around you can create recurring, problematic behavioural patterns, and they will work with you to facilitate change.
Transpersonal therapy
Transpersonal therapy describes any counselling or treatment that emphasises spirituality, human potential, or higher consciousness, including psychosynthesis.