Dynamic Interpersonal Therapy in London

• Having problems in your relationships and it directly affects your well-being?
• Want a short-term therapy that is proven to help those suffering from depression? 

What is dynamic interpersonal therapy? 

Dynamic interpersonal therapy (DIT) focuses on how your relationships affect your mood and well-being in a short-term setting.

If you have functioning, healthy relationships, you feel better about yourself and the world, and depression and anxiety will go away. 

With DIT, you can identify, understand, and replace the experiences and learnings from your past that are causing you stress in your present, especially in how you relate to others.

An individual’s psychological symptoms often improve when he or she is able to deal more effectively with relationship problems.

DIT is a psychodynamic therapy that is time-limited. Sessions of time-limited therapy are scheduled over a fixed period of time. Psychodynamic therapy asserts that we can ignore something that is very painful when it is very painful. In a way, it’s like the saying ‘out of sight, out of mind’. 

Usually, we recognize when we are doing this, but sometimes we bury something so well that we lose sight of it completely. Due to this, difficult experiences from the past can continue to affect our feelings and behavior today. 

There is a safe place in DIT where you can talk openly about how you feel and what’s bothering you.

Therapy sessions

If you aren’t used to hearing silence from your therapist, you may find him or her to be more ‘silent’ than usual. You will be greeted at the beginning of each session, but your therapist may not ask you any questions beyond that. It is instead up to you to tell them what is on your mind. They don’t do this because they don’t want to be friendly, but because they want you to work out your issues privately. It may take some time to adjust to this, but your therapist understands and helps you if you need it. 

You can use dynamic interpersonal therapy to think about problems in your life based on what happens between you and your therapist. Therefore, your therapist will often draw your attention to your feelings during a session. You get a better understanding of what you are struggling with by exploring your relationship with your therapist. 

There may be times when your therapist doesn’t directly answer your questions. There may be a reason behind your questions that they are interested in. People who are very worried about therapy, for example, might not be able to say this. Rather than asking about what therapy entails, they may ask numerous questions. A therapist may notice that behind the questions is a concern about starting therapy rather than directly answering them. As opposed to answering all the questions, helping the patient talk about this is a more helpful approach. 

 

What results can I expect from DIT sessions? 

You can benefit from dynamic interpersonal therapy in the following ways:

• Take a moment to reflect on your feelings and thoughts
• Experiences from the past can be made sense of 
• Get rid of unhealthy ways of relating and replace them with productive ones
• Improve your understanding of yourself and others
• Enhance your ability to connect emotionally
• Be in a better mood and feel less anxious
• Take better care of yourself by making better choices.

But how do I know it will work? 

It is an evidence-based treatment, meaning a growing body of research supports its effectiveness. A study of veterans, for instance, found that a round of sessions reduced anxiety and depression by almost 50%.1

A dynamic interpersonal therapy is also based on psychodynamic therapy, one of the oldest and most established forms of psychotherapy. It is only possible for a therapist to offer DIT to their clients if they are a registered psychodynamic therapist with at least 150 hours of experience.

Improve your relationships today – the Expert Therapy approach

Are you considering attending DIT sessions in London? Most of our practitioners have been trained in more than one form of therapy at top UK institutions. They have a minimum of seven years postgraduate experience. Their passion for what they do is what makes them stand out from the crowd. 

We are located in the City of London, and online. If you would like an initial consultation, please contact us.  

How many DIT sessions do I need?

DIT is usually a short-term therapy that consists of 16 sessions lasting about 50 minutes each. At your first consultation, you and your therapist can decide what would be best for you.

What is a session like?

When you discuss your relationships and experiences with your therapist, he or she will listen carefully. To help you better understand what you mean to yourself and your life, they will reflect back certain things you say.

You will also be given the opportunity to explore your style of relating to others as they examine the way you interact with them, the client-therapist relationship. Positive, supportive communication will be used.

In dynamic interpersonal therapy, there are no homework assignments or written exercises, but you and your therapist will keep track of your progress each week. 

Further reading on dynamic interpersonal therapy 

• What is dynamic interpersonal therapy? 
• The psychodynamic approach – what therapies use it and is it for you?
• DIT vs interpersonal therapy – no, they are not the same thing
• What type of therapy can help you find and keep a relationship?

 

 

Frequently asked questions 

What is dynamic interpersonal therapy used for?

You can improve low moods, anxiety, and major depression with DIT. Additionally, it can improve relationships with friends, family, and coworkers. 

Is DIT the same as psychodynamic therapy?

Despite being an offshoot of psychodynamic therapy, it is not the same. It is based on the framework and theories of psychodynamic therapy, and you can only become a DIT therapist if you are already certified in psychodynamic therapy. DIT is different because it is short-term and focuses on relationship issues. Generally, psychodynamic therapy focuses on general issues and is open-ended and long-term. 

Is DIT the same as interpersonal therapy?

No. The two approaches look at how your relating patterns affect your wellbeing, but otherwise, they are very different, despite having ‘interpersonal’ in their titles. The DIT method is based on psychodynamic therapy, which looks to the past to find answers. There is a nod to psychodynamic ideas in interpersonal therapy, but it relies heavily on cognitive behavioral therapy and attachment theory, and looks at your current life issues rather than your past ones. 

How is DIT therapy different than other forms of therapy?

The dynamic interpersonal therapy differs in the following ways:

• it is short term
• CBT does not require homework
• This is a psychodynamic form of therapy, so your therapist may leave more silences than other forms
• Client-therapist relationships are used to understand relationship issues and try new ways of relating.