Treatment

Dr. Coughlin is on the forefront of clinical research into the process of therapeutic change.  Intensive Short-term Dynamic Psychotherapy (ISDTP), originally developed by Habib Davanloo, M.D., is a scientifically validated method of psychotherapy which dramatically accelerates the process of change, so that patients see measurable results within weeks and months, rather than years.  Therapist and patient engage in an active dialog from the inception of treatment.  In fact, the initial meeting, called a trial therapy, is three hours in length and is followed by a one hour session within a few days of the evaluation.  This intensive session allows the patient to actually experience the therapy and therapist to get a very real sense of what the underlying cause of the patient’s problems are and to determine whether this form of therapy is indicated.

Therapy isn’t something that is done to you but is a process that demands full engagement. The patient is expected to bring will and determination to the process – assuming responsibility for their own life and the outcome of their treatment.  Unlike traditional therapies in which the therapist is relatively silent, uttering an occasional “A huh”, the ISTDP therapist is highly engaged in the process and will provide immediate and continual feedback to the patient.  This kind of collaboration between patient and therapist is essential in overcoming the inevitable blocks and resistances that will emerge as thoughts and feelings that have been long avoided emerge.

The goals of ISTDP are ambitious.  We seek not only to remove symptomatic suffering, but to help patients live at their highest level of capacity – free to love, to work, to create and feel fully alive.  Research suggests that this treatment increases physical health and vitality and the quality of interpersonal relationships, as well as emotional well-being.  If you want to get to the bottom of the problems that have plagued you for years, so you can free yourself to live fully, ISTDP may be an option for you.

For patient’s living locally, therapy is typically conducted on a weekly basis following the intitial evaluation until goals are achieved. For those living out of state, “block therapy” is an option. In block therapy, the entire course of treatment is conducted via 3-4 hour blocks on a monthly basis. Contact Dr. Coughlin by phone if you are interested in discussing treatment options.

In patient’s own words:

“It’s like a miracle really.  You just don’t slowly sort of begin to deal with your life – you get better. You actually get better and you are able to leave some of this shit behind and be a person – a better person – someone capable of getting pleasure from life.  That was always a big draw from me to you – this hopefulness – that I won’t be stuck in this mire forever and that there is a possibility for real growth”.

“I feel liberated from the past. I don’t feel haunted by it anymore.  This past is the past – it’s my history and it shaped me but it doesn’t haunt me.  I’ve carried it around for so long – to not have that anymore is amazing.”