Evidence-Based Treatment Approaches

At CDL & Associates, we use structured, evidence-based treatment methods drawn from decades of clinical research. Rather than using a single approach for every client, we match treatment to your specific concerns, goals, and preferences.

Below is an overview of the core therapeutic approaches our team is trained in and what each one is best suited to address.

Not Sure Where to Start?

Book a free 15-minute consultation. We will help you figure out what kind of support fits your situation best, whether that is therapy, a formal assessment, or a combination. Call (289) 685-4889 or email admin@cdlpsych.ca. 

treatment

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)

CBT is one of the most extensively researched and effective forms of therapy. It is a structured, practical, and goal-oriented approach that focuses on the connection between thoughts, emotions, and behaviours. By identifying and changing unhelpful thinking patterns, CBT helps reduce emotional distress and improve daily functioning.

  • Best suited for: depression and anxiety, adult ADHD, sleep difficulties, chronic pain.

Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT)

CPT is a specialized form of CBT developed specifically for PTSD. It helps clients identify and work through the unhelpful beliefs that develop after a traumatic event — beliefs about safety, trust, control, and self-worth. By changing the way you think about what happened, CPT reduces the ongoing emotional impact of trauma.

  • Best suited for: PTSD, military and first responder trauma, sexual assault trauma, complex trauma

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

ACT helps clients build psychological flexibility, the ability to stay present, open up to difficult emotions, and take action based on personal values rather than being controlled by fear, avoidance, or self-criticism. ACT uses mindfulness and behaviour change strategies to support meaningful change.

  • Best suited for: chronic pain, depression and anxiety, ADHD, life transitions.

Prolonged Exposure (PE) and Exposure Therapy

Exposure Therapy is one of the most effective treatments for anxiety disorders and PTSD. It works by helping clients gradually and safely confront feared situations, memories, or sensations that they have been avoiding. Over time, this reduces the intensity of the fear response and helps clients regain confidence and functioning.

  • Best suited for: PTSD, panic disorder, OCD, social anxiety, specific phobias.

Choosing the Right Treatment for You

You do not need to know which therapy approach is right for you before contacting us. Part of our job is to help you figure that out. Many clients benefit from an integrated approach that combines elements from several methods over the course of treatment.

At your first appointment, we will discuss your concerns, goals, and history, and together we will determine which treatment approach or combination of approaches is most likely to help.

Emotion Focused Therapy (EFT)

EFT helps clients access, understand, and work with their emotional experiences in a supportive, empathic environment. Rather than viewing emotions as problems to control, EFT treats them as important sources of information that can guide healthier responses and deeper self-understanding.

  • Best suited for: depression, relationship difficulties, complex trauma, grief.

Brainspotting

Brainspotting is a neuroexperiential therapy that works directly with the nervous system to process deep emotional and physical distress, including trauma. It uses specific eye positions to access and release stored trauma responses. 

  • Best suited for: trauma and PTSD, performance anxiety, intense emotional states.

Psychodynamic Therapy

Psychodynamic therapy explores how past experiences, relationships, and unconscious processes shape current thoughts, feelings, and behaviours. By developing deeper self-awareness, clients can understand the roots of recurring patterns and work toward more intentional choices.

  • Best suited for: long-standing relational patterns, complex trauma, identity concerns, treatment-resistant depression.

Interpersonal Therapy (IPT)

IPT is a structured, time-limited therapy that focuses on improving current relationships and addressing interpersonal challenges that contribute to emotional distress. It helps clients develop healthier communication skills and navigate significant life changes.

  • Best suited for: depression, grief, life transitions, role conflicts.

Coming Soon — EMDR Therapy

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a structured, evidence-based therapy for trauma that uses bilateral stimulation (typically eye movements) to help the brain reprocess traumatic memories. EMDR is coming soon to CDL & Associates.

Ready to Explore Your Options?

Book a free 15-minute consultation. Call (289) 685-4889 or email admin@cdlpsych.ca. We serve Quinte West, Trenton, Belleville, Northumberland, and across Ontario via telehealth.