Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT)
There are times when emotions such as anger, fear, mistrust, or betrayal may cause disharmony within a relationship. Emotionally Focused Therapy and Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT) are a family of related approaches to psychotherapy with individuals, couples, and/or families. EFT approaches include elements of Experiential Therapy (such as Person-Centered Therapy and Gestalt Therapy), Systemic Therapy, and Attachment Theory. Clients who wish to overcome disconnection and accomplish more emotional connection and honesty within their relationships are good candidates for EFT.
EFT aims at making changes here in the present by de-escalating the couple’s or family members’ negative cycle of engaging and allowing them to gain an understanding of what is happening within the relationship.
Your therapist will collaborate with you to restructure your interactions with loved ones, help you identify and discuss any fears within the relationship, and guide you to use language that doesn’t push the other person away. Clients learn to trust each other and feel safe to discuss their needs while becoming more open and responsive to one another.
With your therapist’s help, you will begin to understand the sources of your negative cycles, learn how to change those patterns, and continue healthier types of conversations outside of therapy. Clients who participate in EFT leave therapy with better listening skills, deeper emotional understanding, and more productive ways to respond to emotional situations.
