The Therapy Beat

Many young people transitioning into the uncertainties of adulthood today are feeling more scared and alone than ever. One therapist has discovered that a key... Read more

By Oren Jay Sofer - Dialogue is a lot like dancing. It takes time to learn the basics, but when we’re conversing smoothly with someone else, it can be... Read more

We all know therapists who seem magically able to establish a powerful sense of trust and connection with even the most distrusting clients. But are there... Read more

In his Symposium address, Dan Siegel challenged some common myths about adolescence and suggested that the aspects of adolescence that can drive us... Read more

Over the course of my career, numerous world events have entered my office. But none of them prepared me for grieving the murder of Catherine, my client of 15... Read more

Dan Siegel knows that nobody—especially an angst-filled teenager—likes being told what to do. That’s why he takes a more roundabout approach to... Read more

By Lauren Dockett - As trauma specialist Mary Jo Barrett explains, Christine Blasey Ford’s testimony has been empowering for many survivors of sexual... Read more

What's it like to be a therapist on the front lines of treating trauma with MDMA? Psychotherapist Marcela Ot'alora G., a principal investigator in... Read more

It’s been nearly 30 years since SSRIs came on the scene, but despite their ubiquity and pairing with a variety of talk- and body-centered treatments, the... Read more

A clinician accustomed to treating trauma in her private practice is also an investigator of an MDMA-assisted psychotherapy research project. From this dual... Read more

As a researcher and outspoken advocate for therapeutic innovation, Bessel van der Kolk has been as influential as anyone in shaping the landscape of trauma... Read more

With his latest book, How to Change Your Mind, noted author Michael Pollan has drawn a comprehensive portrait of the growing psychedelic therapy movement. In... Read more

Innovative co-responder programs around the country are bringing about a shift in how police and clinicians define the boundaries of their work. Read more

Often we hear things from clients like “My relationship ending was so traumatic for me,” or “When my uncle passed away, I was totally traumatized.”... Read more

When I first heard about the growing research on the therapeutic use of psychedelics to treat trauma, I was frankly a bit bemused. But it’s been hard to... Read more

When I got sick, something amazing happened: I let go of my agenda. Poof—just like that. In the process, I learned there’s nothing more important than... Read more

Many times, when clients cry, clinicians feel an urge to rush in and “fix things” that aren’t broken, which can actually make things worse. Watch as Jay... Read more

Most therapists recognize that physiological processes hugely influence emotion and behavior. But according to psychiatrist Robert Hedaya, too many tend to... Read more

There’s been a lot of outcry from mental health professionals, doctors, parents, and people who’ve suffered from eating disorders about the trailer for the... Read more

According to therapist Ron Taffel, author of Breaking Through to Teens, kids who need the extra boost from medication need their therapists to go the extra... Read more

As a psychologist and a mother, I’m haunted by the children of immigrants we’ve all been reading about, stolen from their parents and callously detained... Read more

When it comes to talking about love and relationships with young adult children, too many parents are silent. But research shows that the vast majority of... Read more

We may look back on June 2018 as a tide-turning moment in public awareness of severe depression for reasons virtually all of us hate. In this issue, we... Read more

Most clinicians know that if a person has suffered one bout of serious depression, he or she is much more vulnerable to another one. But most therapists still... Read more

At its worst, depression extinguishes your inner pilot light, depriving you of the substrate that makes you feel real. Sufferers complain of living in a fog... Read more

Increasingly, psychiatrists are recognizing that offering medications as the primary treatment of depression for years and years is simply not working... Read more

Clinicians interested in applying coaching skills in psychotherapy believe that working more from a collaborative partnership position—like a personal... Read more

New policies are deepening the trauma of many immigrants, and heightening challenges for the therapists trying to help them. Read more

The labels we use to describe clients’ behaviors have important therapeutic implications. Sometimes using the word addiction and explaining its neurological... Read more

This is the story of one of the most turbulent storms in my personal and professional life. After the storm, I learned there’s something about healing from... Read more