ANNA BRANDON, PHD, ABPP

Partner-Assisted Interpersonal Psychotherapy

(PA-IPT)

Partner-Assisted Therapy (PAT) is a brief guided psychotherapy treatment developed for women depressed during pregnancy and the postpartum that includes their spouse or an identified partner in every session.  Because this is not couples therapy, individuals who receive PAT need to be in a committed, satisfying relationship.  The therapist educates the partner about the experience and symptoms of depression, engaging the woman to describe what her episode of depression is like and what may have started it.  The partner also learns valuable techniques for extending the helpful components of psychotherapy to the home environment, such as reflective listening, problem-solving, and communication analysis.  We can revise this therapy if the partner you would like to include is a family member or close  friend.  Treatment generally involves eight or nine one hour-long sessions, and follow-up sessions may be used to  reinforce progress.

To read about Dr. Brandon's research with PA-IPT, click on this link: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23053218