My T is mostly psychodynamic. We tend to look for patterns in what I do and how I think about or react to things. We look for the origins of the patterns, to help me understand how what I do now may be more of a reaction to something from 40 years ago than it is to anything current. Recognizing that helps me react more appropriately to current things.

We don't spend a lot of time discussing our relationship, but it's definitely part of the equation. I have more of a paternal transference going on with him. My own parents weren't/aren't particularly good at caring for me and T is awesome at it. He's helping me understand just how lacking my parents were by showing me how it could have been done.

Anyway, it's not a quick fix, like CBT and DBT purport to be. It's a longer term therapy. But I think it has longer term results, too, since you're not just changing the top layer of a problem, you're getting to the root of it. It's hard work, can be painful and can sometimes feel a lot worse before it feels better, but I think it's worth it.