Psychotherapy Works

Psychotherapy works! It treats any problem that is mentally- or emotionally-based.*

Psychotherapy is a very useful way to alleviate symptoms and manage crises. It is also a very effective preventative care measure: Psychotherapy is designed to educate patients about themselves, their reactions to life stressors, and effective coping skills. This education reduces the need for future care in that patients develop their own curative skills.

For best results, some key factors need to be present:

Motivation: Psychotherapy works best when you are ready and willing to look at yourself and how you live your life in relation to others and the world around you.
• If you are prepared to challenge yourself, your beliefs, and your behaviors, psychotherapy can provide you with your desired results.
• Psychotherapy can greatly assist you in getting to the root of why it may be difficult to look at yourself critically.
• One of the primary goals in psychotherapy is to understand your defense mechanisms and to explore their origins and purpose in your life.

Insight: Psychotherapy works best the more self-understanding you possess.
• Insight, self-awareness, self-understanding, and self-knowledge are primary components to effective psychotherapy treatment.
• Your success in psychotherapy will depend on your ability to move from intellectual insight (a rational awareness of your condition) to emotional insight (the true, deep understanding of yourself).

Growth: Psychotherapy works best when you can recognize inhibitors to your growth and work through them.
• During the psychotherapy process, you may recognize that some people around you (e.g., friends, family) inadvertently restrict your growth. Tension may result, as you grow in spite of the pressure you feel from others holding you back.
• When discussed in the therapy setting, these points of tension can serve as valuable opportunities for you to begin asserting healthier boundaries with yourself and those around you.

Commitment: Psychotherapy works best when you commit to the process.
• The largest percentage of people who drop out of therapy do so after one session; those who return after the initial session tend to stay until completion.
• Attending psychotherapy sessions regularly (typically once a week) will keep your new internalized objective self-observer on task so you can apply your new insights and ways of relating to others on a regular basis.

Practice: Psychotherapy works best when you can practice new behaviors in a safe, therapeutic environment.
• As part of your psychotherapy experience, you will learn new ways of relating and experiencing yourself in relation to others in real time with Dr. Gale.

*For more information on Mental Health and the effectiveness of psychotherapy, please visit the WebMD Mental Health Center

Professional Affiliations

American Psychological Association
California Psychological Association
San Diego Psychological Association

  • Newsletter Editor: The San Diego Psychologist
  • Winner: CPA's 2008 Outstanding Newsletter of the Year Award
  • Men’s Issues Committee Member
  • Supervision Committee Member
Learn more about Dr. Gale's Practice.