Types of Therapy
Have you heard about a type of therapy (often called a therapeutic orientation) that you want to know more about, or are you starting at the beginning exploring therapy for your partnership directly or indirectly (ie, an individual struggle affecting your relationship)? These therapy glossaries* will give you the basics to many therapeutic approaches so you can start making sense of all the options.
“Types of Therapy” from Good Therapy, https://www.goodtherapy.org/learn-about-therapy/types
“Types of Therapy” from Psychology Today: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/types-of-therapy
* A glossary is a special dictionary centered around a certain topic
Bulger, Adam. “Eight Types of Marriage Counseling (And Which One Works Best for You and Your Partner”. Your Tango, 29 Feb. 2020, https://www.yourtango.com/2020332070/eight-types-marriage-counseling-which-one-works-best-for-you-your-partner
Therapist Directories
American Association of Marriage & Family Therapists (AAMFT) : Search by Postal Code or Clinician name
American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors, and Therapists (AASECT) : Locate by Country or U.S. state and profession (educator, counselor, or therapist)
American Psychoanalytic Association: Find analysis for psychoanalysis by geographical location, analysis name, insurance, special interests (grief, OCD, psychosis, etc.), language spoken, and more.
Black Female Therapists: Locate black female mental health clinicians by keywords, radius-based zip codes, insurance, and type of sessions (virtual or in person). Below the searching map is a very neat scrolling menu with clinician names and photos, specializations, credentials, and a connect button. They also have icons to identify clinicians who accept self-pay, offer virtual sessions, and more.
Clinicians of Color Directory: Locate clinicians by location, then choose additional preferences such as insurance and clinician practice to choose the clinician right for you. You can contact a clinician by visiting their own website directlyor from the Clinicians of Color website.
Conservative Therapists: from the CT website: “Half of Americans have Conservative Values, yet approximately 90% of therapists, psychologists, and psychiatrists are guided by a Liberal and even Socialist Value System; creating a barrier for Conservatives who would prefer talking with a professional who supports their values. This directory is meant to reduce barriers and provide support for Americans who are currently underserved.” Use the Find a Therapist link and search by location within the United States (town, zip code, etc.) with several choices of miles’ radius.
Discernment Counseling – is one partner ambivalent about saving the relationship and another committed? Do you want to determine if you want to give marital therapy a try? Work with a discernment counselor who can help you decide how to provide in getting your relationship help or beginning to uncouple as kindly as possible. Select your U.S. state then browse clinicians by state’s regions (Southwest, etc).
Gaylesta: Search by location for a clinician that is LGBTQ trained and friendly. Gaylesta is maintained by The Psychotherapist Association for Gender & Sexual Diversity.
Gottman Referral Network (The Gottman Institute) : Search by Country/State, City/Zip Code, or Therapist Name. note the featured clinicians for your state (it is unclear how the decision is made ot feature clinicians).
Imago Relationships of North America – Imago Therapists: You can search by city or zip code
Inclusive Therapists: Find clinicians who “center the needs of marginalized populations, including Black, Indigenous, and People of Color, the LGBTQ+ community, neurodivergent folx, and people with disabilities”. Anti-racist, anti-ableist, and anti-oppression, they seek equitable access for all people to mental health care. Find therapists by map and limit by insurance, specialties, therapist identity, language spoken, office facilities (ex – close to public transportation), therapeutic approach, spiritual approach (ie, a clinician familiar with interfaith, Indigenous or Christianity as examples) Use Get Matched with a Therapist to answer a few questions and get clinician matches from the Inclusive Therapist team within 5 days.
Institute for Muslim Mental Health: Find clinicians based on location.
International Centre for Excellence in Emotionally Focused Therapy (ICEEFT) : Search by Clinician Name, City, Province/State, or Country
Khalil Center: Mental health services, including psychiatric help, premarital coaching, therapy, and more. You can book an appointment directly through the Khalil Center’s website or find a clinician by looking at the International Association for Islamic Psychology.
Latinx Therapy: Search for therapists by Geographic Area (City, State, Zip Code), Specialty, Cultural Identify, session types (couples, inidividual, etc), clinician migration background (DACA therapist, child of immigrants, formerly undocumented therapist), cultural identity (Venezuelan, Black, Mexican, Chicana, etc), and Insurance. Latinx Therapy was founded in 2018 to destigmatize and encourage mental health help-seeking behavior in the Latinx community. 98% of the therapists in the direct speak Spanish.
Marriage Friendly Therapists: Put in your US zip code, then you can browse by Areas of Interest (men’s Issues, Premarital Counseling, etc) and also view the returned clinicians.
Meet Monarch: Search for clinicians by name or specialty in service (trauma, polyamory, pregnancy and postpartum, etc). You can also filter your search by location and insurance. You can also see Top Therapists by specialty in the results list – it is not stated how “top” is determined. You can see the date a clinician is next available – including Today
National Queer & Trans Therapists of Color Network (NQTTCN): NQTTCN works to “transform mental health for queer and trans people of color in North America”. Search for mental health practitioners by geographic region in North America for therapists who have specialized in supporting queer and trans persons of color (QTPoC). Search initially by your location (zip code, city, or state) then you can see the resulting clinicians and also limit them further (do they provide telemental health? Do they provide sliding scale or low fee?)
Neurodivergent Therapist Directory: Please see clinicians based in The U.S. as well as other countries (right now: Australia, Canada, Germany, Ireland, Poland, Spain, and the United Kingdom)
Open Path Psychotherapy Collective: More affordable (between $30=$70) therapy sessions for people. Search by things like city or zip code.
The PACT (Psychobiological Approach to Couple’s Therapy) Institute: search by PACT level of training, Specialties, state, or browse the alphabetical list beneath those search options.
Postpartum Support International – right now the directory includes therapists in the US and Canada (UK forthcoming). You may search by your issue, clinician name, or geographic location. PSI also provides other services like a peer support group and phone hotlines.
AS OF 3/9/23 website updating Modern Commitment: Find a Marriage Counselor or a Discernment Counselor (helping members of the couple discern whether or not to do couple’s therapy, separate, or divorce, or another step) – traditional marriage counseling, brief stability glue, or separation/divorce
Psychology Today – find Therapists, Psychiatrists, Treatment Centers, and Support Groups by Zip Code
South Asian Mental Health Initiative & Network: Search by location for services such as therapy from a mental health center, therapy from a private practice (the small business of a therapist or group of therapists), or for educational centers.
South Asian Therapists: Locate therapists of South Asian-decent in 11 countries through the world including (but not limited to) Canada, the United States, the UK, Malaysia, Pakistan, Australia, and Ireland. Each therapist has a brief biography that may include a headshot, clinical orientations and interests, and languages spoken.
Therapy for Black Men: A directory of clinicians seeking to understand and hold space for Black men. Find a therapist by geographic location, profession (marriage and family therapist, counselor, psychotherapist, psychologist, etc), modality (group therapy, individual therapy, family, couples), type of therapy (attachment based, Culturally sensitive, cognitive behavioral (CBT), etc), and gender, insurance, and age.
Therapy for Black Girls: put in your location (US based) then among search results, please view returned clinician results or search further by states licensed, specialties, and insurance accepted
Articles
Benson, Kyle. “5 Steps to Inspire Your Partner to Join You in Attending Couple’s Therapy.” Gottman Institute, 23 Jan. 2020, https://www.gottman.com/blog/5-steps-to-inspire-your-partner-to-join-you-in-attending-couples-therapy
Vilhauer, Jennice. “7 Ways to get More out of Your Therapy.” Psychology Today, 20 March 2021, https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/living-forward/202103/7-ways-get-more-out-your-therapy-sessions
Disclaimer: This site is informational only and its resources are not substitutions for professional therapy. If you need professional help, you’re currently on the Find a Therapist page where you can locate a qualified mental health professional.