FOY Wellness and Recovery is a licensed PHP and IOP program in Agoura Hills, California. Our clinical program is developed and overseen by Clinical Program Director Dr. Shannon Dobbs, a licensed clinical psychologist. Psychodynamic Therapy is offered for clients seeking to understand the deeper roots of recurring patterns in their lives.
What Is Psychodynamic Therapy?
Psychodynamic Therapy, rooted in psychoanalytic theory, explores how unconscious patterns, unresolved past experiences, and internal conflicts shape present-day thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. Modern psychodynamic therapy is more structured and time-limited than classical psychoanalysis, and has a growing body of research supporting its effectiveness for depression, anxiety, and personality patterns.
How Psychodynamic Therapy Works
Sessions involve open exploration of a client’s history, relationships, and recurring patterns, often paying particular attention to the therapeutic relationship itself as a window into how a client relates to others more broadly.
Psychodynamic Therapy at FOY
At FOY, Psychodynamic Therapy is offered within individual sessions for clients who benefit from deeper exploration of underlying patterns connected to their presenting symptoms, often alongside more structured, skills-based modalities.
Conditions Psychodynamic Therapy Addresses
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Recurring relational patterns
- Personality patterns affecting functioning
- Unresolved grief or past experiences influencing present symptoms
What to Expect
Psychodynamic sessions are typically more open-ended and exploratory than structured, skills-based therapies, focusing on patterns and connections that emerge over time through discussion.
FAQs
Is Psychodynamic Therapy the same as psychoanalysis?
No, modern psychodynamic therapy is generally more structured and time-limited than classical psychoanalysis, though it draws on the same theoretical roots.
Will sessions focus mainly on my childhood?
Sessions may explore past experiences relevant to current patterns, but psychodynamic therapy is not exclusively focused on childhood, it connects past and present as relevant.
Is Psychodynamic Therapy evidence-based?
Yes, contemporary research increasingly supports psychodynamic therapy’s effectiveness for depression, anxiety, and certain personality patterns, alongside more extensively studied approaches like CBT.
How is this different from CBT?
CBT is more structured and present-focused on specific thoughts and behaviors; Psychodynamic Therapy is more exploratory, focused on underlying patterns and unconscious influences.
Will Psychodynamic Therapy involve homework like CBT does?
Generally no, psychodynamic work is typically more conversational and exploratory rather than assignment-based.
Is Psychodynamic Therapy appropriate for substance use treatment?
Yes, it can be particularly useful for understanding underlying patterns that contribute to substance use, often combined with more structured addiction-focused modalities.
How long does Psychodynamic Therapy typically take?
Duration varies by individual and is reviewed as part of your ongoing treatment plan.
Is the relationship with my therapist part of the treatment itself in this approach?
Yes, the therapeutic relationship is often used as a meaningful source of insight into a client’s broader relational patterns in psychodynamic work.
Is Psychodynamic Therapy covered by insurance?
It is delivered as part of FOY’s PHP and IOP clinical programming, billed as a level of care. Contact our admissions team about your specific plan.
Take the First Step
Call (805) 659-8429 or visit foywellnessandrecovery.com/contact for a free confidential assessment. We are in-network with Blue Shield, Cigna, and TRICARE through TriWest, and accept most other major PPO plans, including Anthem, Aetna, Multiplan, HMC HealthWorks, and Blue Cross Blue Shield, on an out-of-network basis.