Psychodynamic psychotherapy

  • What is psychodynamic psychotherapy?

    Psychodynamic psychotherapy (in German: tiefenpsychologisch fundierte Psychotherapie), which I offer in my practice in Berlin-Kreuzberg, is a scientifically recognised form of psychotherapy. It assumes that current emotional difficulties are often connected with unconscious conflicts and earlier relational experiences.
    The focus is on the difficulties you are experiencing today, and on how they came about and why they keep recurring. Together we develop an understanding of the underlying connections and find new ways of dealing with them.
    The aim of treatment is to ease current difficulties in a lasting way and to make changes possible that can be felt in everyday life.
Praxisraum für die tiefenpsychologisch fundierte Psychotherapie mit Sitzgelegenheiten

ORIENTATION

When can psychodynamic psychotherapy help?

When current difficulties dominate everyday life, it can help to understand the inner connections behind them. The therapy focuses on a clearly defined concern and takes formative experiences into account.

Current difficulties

If anxiety, low mood, exhaustion or psychosomatic complaints affect your daily life.

Recurring relationship conflicts

If similar difficulties keep arising in your relationship, family or work and you want to find new ways of responding.

Understanding feelings and reactions

If you want to understand why certain situations trigger strong feelings or familiar patterns of reaction.

Anchoring change in everyday life

If you want to ease current difficulties and find new ways of relating to yourself and others.

Wohnliches Behandlungszimmer für die tiefenpsychologisch fundierte Psychotherapie

KNOWLEDGE & ORIENTATION

Understanding psychodynamic psychotherapy

In Germany this method is called tiefenpsychologisch fundierte Psychotherapie (TP); in English it is usually referred to as psychodynamic psychotherapy. Below you will find answers to the most common questions about how it works and how therapy unfolds.

In psychodynamic psychotherapy, we look at the themes and conflicts that are currently weighing on you. We are interested not only in the symptoms themselves, but also in the inner connections behind them.
Together we develop a therapeutic focus based on your current difficulties. In our conversations, we explore how earlier experiences, recurring relationship patterns and unconscious conflicts may influence how you experience things today. The aim is to understand these connections better, find new ways of acting and anchor change in everyday life.

Current difficulties are often more than just a problem. They can point to inner conflicts or coping strategies developed early in life. What once helped us deal with difficult experiences can unconsciously stand in our way today. So together we look not only at the symptoms, but also at their meaning. This creates a deeper understanding of why certain difficulties keep recurring and how lasting change can become possible.

In psychodynamic psychotherapy, we agree on a focus together: the theme or inner conflict that most strongly shapes your current difficulties. This focus gives therapy a clear direction and helps to understand connections step by step. Over the course of therapy, the focus may change or widen.

Feelings are important clues to what moves us inside. Therapy is not about judging or suppressing feelings, but about noticing and understanding them better. This makes it easier to deal with difficult situations and to have new experiences.

Psychodynamic psychotherapy looks first at what is troubling you today. Current conflicts, relationships and feelings are at the centre. Past experiences are only brought in when they help to understand present patterns. The aim is not to stay in the past, but to make change possible in the here and now.

Yes. When important personal themes are addressed, difficult feelings can arise at times. At the same time, therapy offers a protected setting in which to understand and work through them together. Many patients find that precisely this leads to more inner stability and relief in the long run.

The length depends on your individual difficulties and goals. Some people experience noticeable relief after a few months; others need a longer process. Together we regularly review what has already been achieved and which goals are still in focus.

Psychodynamic psychotherapy is suitable for people who suffer from recurring relationship conflicts, anxiety, depression, psychosomatic symptoms or ongoing emotional strain. It is especially helpful when difficulties keep recurring and you want to understand and change the underlying patterns in a lasting way.

In my private practice, treatment can be reimbursed through private health insurance or Beihilfe , paid privately or, under certain conditions, funded by statutory health insurance through reimbursement (Kostenerstattung) . A session lasts 50 minutes; you will find how often we meet and in which setting in the comparison of methods. I describe how treatment begins under process.

Whether the focused framework of psychodynamic psychotherapy is sufficient, or whether psychoanalysis would make more sense, depends, among other things, on whether a current conflict is in the foreground or whether patterns are showing that have existed for a long time and affect several areas of life. You will find a detailed comparison of both methods here:

Comparing the methods →

Which method suits you best can be assessed well after the first sessions.

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