What Is Supportive-Expressive Therapy?

Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsDefinitionTechniquesUsesBenefitsEffectivenessThings to ConsiderHow to Get Started

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

Definition

Techniques

Uses

Benefits

Effectiveness

Things to Consider

How to Get Started

What Is Supportive-Expressive Therapy?

Supportive-expressive therapy is an evidence-based, psychodynamic psychotherapy that has been found to be effective in treating certainsubstance use disorders.

What Is Psychodynamic Therapy?

Supportive-expressive therapy is a manualized and time-limited intervention for individuals with more severe substance use disorders. It focuses on substance use within the context of the person and their relationships with other people. A typical course of therapy consists of 16 to 30 sessions, which last about an hour each.

Supportive-expressive therapy is a combination of two main components:

This is done through working on three areas of focus:

Through supportive-expressive therapy, the therapist and client explore and gain insight into conflicts that developed within the client through early experiences and how these are represented in current situations and relationships.

What Supportive-Expressive Therapy Can Help With

Like other forms of therapy, supportive-expressive therapy can be used to treat a variety of mental health problems, including:

The Best Online Therapy for Anxiety, Tried and Tested

Benefits of Supportive-Expressive Therapy

This approach to therapy also works to influence how people think, feel, and act, promoting better coping skills, self-reflection, insight, and emotional growth.

The Best Online Therapy Services for Depression We Tried and Tested

Research has shown that supportive-expressive therapy is more effective in treating severe substance use disorders than drug counseling, and improvements have been found to continue to be present 12 months after completing treatment.

Supportive-expressive therapy may be particularly well suited to clients with severe substance use disorders andcocaine use disorderwhen someone is open to discussing and exploring their internal experience.

Although supportive-expressive psychotherapy has been studied for the use of substance use disorders and other mental health conditions, there is still little known about which strategies are most effective, or when it’s best for therapists to use supportive versus expressive techniques.

However, supportive-expressive therapy is non-directive, which means that the client, not the therapist, decides what is important to focus on. While the therapist is the guiding hand, you must do the hard work, including being vulnerable, opening up, and committing to the therapy process.

With any type ofaddiction treatment, it’s also important to remember that the reality of recovery includes dealing with urges, cravings, and evenrelapses, so you must be honest with your therapy.

If you feel that you or someone you love might benefit from supportive-expressive therapy, consider the following steps:

Get Help NowWe’ve tried, tested, and written unbiased reviews of thebest online therapy programsincluding Talkspace, BetterHelp, and ReGain. Find out which option is the best for you.

Get Help Now

We’ve tried, tested, and written unbiased reviews of thebest online therapy programsincluding Talkspace, BetterHelp, and ReGain. Find out which option is the best for you.

8 SourcesVerywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Leichsenring F, Ablon S, Barber JP, et al.Developing a prototype for short-term psychodynamic (supportive-expressive) therapy: An empirical study with the psychotherapy process Q-set.Psychotherapy Research. 2015;26(4). doi:10.1080/10503307.2015.1051160Gottdiener WH.Understanding, treating, and preventing the development of substance use disorders.Parenting and Substance Abuse. Published online March 2013. doi:10.1093/med:psych/9780199743100.003.0005Vos J, Craig M, Cooper M.Existential therapies: A meta-analysis of their effects on psychological outcomes.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. 2015;83(1). doi:10.1037/a0037167Fonagy P.The effectiveness of psychodynamic psychotherapies: An update.World Psychiatry. 2015;14(2). doi:10.1002/wps.20235Knopf A. NIDA:Plethora of treatments for SUDs, regardless of substance.Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly. 2020;32(24). doi:10.1002/adaw.32751López G, Orchowski LM, Reddy MK, Nargiso J, Johnson JE.A review of research-supported group treatments for drug use disorders.Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention, and Policy. 2021;16(1). doi:10.1186/s13011-021-00371-0Dugosh K, Abraham A, Seymour B, McLoyd K, Chalk M, Festinger D.A systematic review on the use of psychosocial interventions in conjunction with medications for the treatment of opioid addiction.Journal of Addiction Medicine. 2016;10(2):93-103. doi:10.1097/ADM.0000000000000193Leibovich L, Zilcha-Mano S.What is the right time for supportive versus expressive interventions in supervision? An illustration based on a clinical mistake.Psychotherapy. 2016;53(3):297-301. doi:10.1037/pst0000078Additional ReadingDiener MJ, Pierson MM.Technique and therapeutic process from a supportive-expressive relational psychodynamic approach.Psychotherapy. 2013;50(3):424-427. doi:10.1037/a0032404Luborsky, L.Principles of psychoanalytic psychotherapy: A manual for supportive-expressive treatment.Basic Books. 1984.

8 Sources

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Leichsenring F, Ablon S, Barber JP, et al.Developing a prototype for short-term psychodynamic (supportive-expressive) therapy: An empirical study with the psychotherapy process Q-set.Psychotherapy Research. 2015;26(4). doi:10.1080/10503307.2015.1051160Gottdiener WH.Understanding, treating, and preventing the development of substance use disorders.Parenting and Substance Abuse. Published online March 2013. doi:10.1093/med:psych/9780199743100.003.0005Vos J, Craig M, Cooper M.Existential therapies: A meta-analysis of their effects on psychological outcomes.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. 2015;83(1). doi:10.1037/a0037167Fonagy P.The effectiveness of psychodynamic psychotherapies: An update.World Psychiatry. 2015;14(2). doi:10.1002/wps.20235Knopf A. NIDA:Plethora of treatments for SUDs, regardless of substance.Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly. 2020;32(24). doi:10.1002/adaw.32751López G, Orchowski LM, Reddy MK, Nargiso J, Johnson JE.A review of research-supported group treatments for drug use disorders.Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention, and Policy. 2021;16(1). doi:10.1186/s13011-021-00371-0Dugosh K, Abraham A, Seymour B, McLoyd K, Chalk M, Festinger D.A systematic review on the use of psychosocial interventions in conjunction with medications for the treatment of opioid addiction.Journal of Addiction Medicine. 2016;10(2):93-103. doi:10.1097/ADM.0000000000000193Leibovich L, Zilcha-Mano S.What is the right time for supportive versus expressive interventions in supervision? An illustration based on a clinical mistake.Psychotherapy. 2016;53(3):297-301. doi:10.1037/pst0000078Additional ReadingDiener MJ, Pierson MM.Technique and therapeutic process from a supportive-expressive relational psychodynamic approach.Psychotherapy. 2013;50(3):424-427. doi:10.1037/a0032404Luborsky, L.Principles of psychoanalytic psychotherapy: A manual for supportive-expressive treatment.Basic Books. 1984.

Leichsenring F, Ablon S, Barber JP, et al.Developing a prototype for short-term psychodynamic (supportive-expressive) therapy: An empirical study with the psychotherapy process Q-set.Psychotherapy Research. 2015;26(4). doi:10.1080/10503307.2015.1051160Gottdiener WH.Understanding, treating, and preventing the development of substance use disorders.Parenting and Substance Abuse. Published online March 2013. doi:10.1093/med:psych/9780199743100.003.0005Vos J, Craig M, Cooper M.Existential therapies: A meta-analysis of their effects on psychological outcomes.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. 2015;83(1). doi:10.1037/a0037167Fonagy P.The effectiveness of psychodynamic psychotherapies: An update.World Psychiatry. 2015;14(2). doi:10.1002/wps.20235Knopf A. NIDA:Plethora of treatments for SUDs, regardless of substance.Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly. 2020;32(24). doi:10.1002/adaw.32751López G, Orchowski LM, Reddy MK, Nargiso J, Johnson JE.A review of research-supported group treatments for drug use disorders.Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention, and Policy. 2021;16(1). doi:10.1186/s13011-021-00371-0Dugosh K, Abraham A, Seymour B, McLoyd K, Chalk M, Festinger D.A systematic review on the use of psychosocial interventions in conjunction with medications for the treatment of opioid addiction.Journal of Addiction Medicine. 2016;10(2):93-103. doi:10.1097/ADM.0000000000000193Leibovich L, Zilcha-Mano S.What is the right time for supportive versus expressive interventions in supervision? An illustration based on a clinical mistake.Psychotherapy. 2016;53(3):297-301. doi:10.1037/pst0000078

Gottdiener WH.Understanding, treating, and preventing the development of substance use disorders.Parenting and Substance Abuse. Published online March 2013. doi:10.1093/med:psych/9780199743100.003.0005

Vos J, Craig M, Cooper M.Existential therapies: A meta-analysis of their effects on psychological outcomes.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. 2015;83(1). doi:10.1037/a0037167

Fonagy P.The effectiveness of psychodynamic psychotherapies: An update.World Psychiatry. 2015;14(2). doi:10.1002/wps.20235

Knopf A. NIDA:Plethora of treatments for SUDs, regardless of substance.Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly. 2020;32(24). doi:10.1002/adaw.32751

López G, Orchowski LM, Reddy MK, Nargiso J, Johnson JE.A review of research-supported group treatments for drug use disorders.Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention, and Policy. 2021;16(1). doi:10.1186/s13011-021-00371-0

Dugosh K, Abraham A, Seymour B, McLoyd K, Chalk M, Festinger D.A systematic review on the use of psychosocial interventions in conjunction with medications for the treatment of opioid addiction.Journal of Addiction Medicine. 2016;10(2):93-103. doi:10.1097/ADM.0000000000000193

Leibovich L, Zilcha-Mano S.What is the right time for supportive versus expressive interventions in supervision? An illustration based on a clinical mistake.Psychotherapy. 2016;53(3):297-301. doi:10.1037/pst0000078

Diener MJ, Pierson MM.Technique and therapeutic process from a supportive-expressive relational psychodynamic approach.Psychotherapy. 2013;50(3):424-427. doi:10.1037/a0032404Luborsky, L.Principles of psychoanalytic psychotherapy: A manual for supportive-expressive treatment.Basic Books. 1984.

Diener MJ, Pierson MM.Technique and therapeutic process from a supportive-expressive relational psychodynamic approach.Psychotherapy. 2013;50(3):424-427. doi:10.1037/a0032404

Meet Our Review Board

Share Feedback

Was this page helpful?Thanks for your feedback!What is your feedback?HelpfulReport an ErrorOtherSubmit

Was this page helpful?

Thanks for your feedback!

What is your feedback?HelpfulReport an ErrorOtherSubmit

What is your feedback?

What Is Supportive-Expressive Therapy?#

What Supportive-Expressive Therapy Can Help With#

Benefits of Supportive-Expressive Therapy#

Get Help Now#

What Is Supportive-Expressive Therapy?

What Supportive-Expressive Therapy Can Help With

Benefits of Supportive-Expressive Therapy

Get Help Now