What is Talk Therapy | Conditions in Which Talk Therapy Can be Useful | Is Talk Therapy Effective?

What is Talk Therapy?

Talk therapy is also known as psychotherapy. It is a process in which a person attends sessions with a therapist to talk about their experiences. The purpose of talk therapy is to identify the issues that cause emotional distress. Sometimes the issues are complex and may lead to a diagnosis of depression and anxiety. But for most people talk therapy can be a safe place to discuss feelings and emotions triggered by daily stressors and medical illnesses or relationship issues, grief or loss, or impact of specific trauma.

Once a personal therapist identifies the issues, he can help a person understand how they are affecting his life and what strategies to work on to decrease the symptoms. The sessions in talk therapy last for an hour and how long they continue depends on the severity of the symptoms and the plan developed by the therapist.

The frequency of talk therapy sessions may change bi-monthly or as the therapist observes you developing coping strategies and showing signs of improvement.

Types of Talk Therapy

There are a lot of options for talk therapy and one can choose from the approach that suits them best. According to the American Psychological Association, there are five broad categories of psychotherapy.⁽¹⁾

Behavior Therapy: It focuses on reducing or eliminating destructive or unhealthy behavior and also by addressing them and reinforcing desirable behavior.
Cognitive Behavior Therapy: This therapy is based more on what a person thinks rather than what he does.
Humanistic Therapy: This therapy in itself has three subtypes which include client-centered, Gestalt therapy, and existential therapy.
Psychodynamic Therapy: This approach takes a look into the unconscious meaning and motivation of feelings, thoughts, and behavior. In this therapy, a trusted relationship is developed between the client and the therapist and it is often referred to as talk therapy.
Holistic and Integrative Therapy: In this, an integrative style from different therapies is developed by the therapist to create a style that meets the client’s needs.

There are certain styles of talk therapy used by the therapist to treat the most common mental health conditions. For example, cognitive behavior therapy is a combination of cognitive and behavior therapy for the treatment of anxiety disorders.⁽²⁾ It is also effectively used to treat depression and its related effects. Psychodynamic and interpersonal therapy are used in the treatment of anxiety and depression.

Conditions in Which Talk Therapy Can be Useful

Anyone can benefit from talk therapy but there are a few conditions in which talk therapy might be particularly helpful. These include:

Is Talk Therapy Effective?

Yes, talk therapy does work. Its success depends on the willingness of the person to be open about the process and how honest a person is and also on the dynamic of the patient-therapist relationship. Talk therapy is used in various conditions and research also supports its usage.

A review done in 2015 found cognitive behavioral therapy to be the most supportive option in the treatment of anxiety disorders.⁽³⁾

One more study done in 2018 found early treatment with talk therapy was helpful in reducing serious mental health conditions in people with bereavement issues.⁽⁴⁾

With time online treatment has gained popularity and it was questionable whether or not they were effective.⁽⁵⁾ A study done in 2014 resulted that online treatments were as effective as face-to-face depression treatments. Another study showed that online cognitive behavior therapy was cost-effective as well as effective in terms of results.⁽⁶⁾

Talk therapy is an effective means of treating a mental condition and recurring stressors that interfere with daily life. A therapist can help in pointing out the core issues, negative or harmful patterns of behavior, and aid treatment for a problem.

What is Talk Therapy | Conditions in Which Talk Therapy Can be Useful | Is Talk Therapy Effective?