Davis A. Suskind, MD
Home | about Dr. Suskind | Psychiatric Evaluation | therapy & analysis | Psychodynamic Psychiatry | expert witness | fitness for duty

Psychotherapy & Psychoanalysis

People seek treatment for many different reasons. Some are facing an acute crisis — anxiety, depression, relationship strain, loss, or a painful life transition. Others have a growing sense that certain longstanding patterns continue to limit their ability to feel fulfilled, connected, creative, or fully themselves. Psychotherapy and psychoanalysis both offer opportunities for psychological change, but they differ in depth, intensity, and scope.
 
The psychotherapy process is sometimes similar to renovating a home. A person may initially seek help for one specific problem, only to discover that the issue is connected to a larger underlying structure. As treatment progresses, new possibilities, needs, and perspectives often emerge that were not initially visible.  What begins as an effort to relieve suffering may gradually become a broader exploration of identity, meaning, emotional freedom, and the capacity to live more fully.  At its best, this work develops within a relationship marked by trust, curiosity, and thoughtful collaboration — allowing deeper aspects of experience to be understood and transformed over time.
Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy may be relatively focused and practical, helping a person manage a specific symptom, conflict, or period of stress. At other times, therapy becomes a deeper exploration of emotional life, relationships, self-esteem, motivation, and recurring patterns that may no longer serve a person well.  A skilled psychotherapist may at different moments provide support, perspective, emotional containment, insight, or guidance toward new ways of understanding oneself and others. The treatment evolves according to the individual’s goals, personality, and life circumstances.  Psychotherapy may also be thoughtfully integrated with medication when appropriate. Decisions regarding medication involve careful consideration of biological, psychological, and relational factors rather than a purely symptom-based approach.

Psychoanalysis

Psychoanalysis is a more intensive and highly individualized form of treatment designed for people seeking a deeper understanding of themselves and more enduring psychological change.  Often, individuals entering psychoanalysis are not simply suffering from symptoms alone. They may notice recurring patterns that continue despite intelligence, insight, or achievement, including:
   repeated disappointments in relationships
    self-doubt despite success
    difficulty sustaining intimacy
    chronic inhibition or self-sabotage
    a persistent sense of emptiness, restlessness, or unrealized potential

Psychoanalysis is based on the understanding that much of emotional life occurs outside conscious awareness. People frequently do not fully recognize the deeper fears, conflicts, expectations, and emotional assumptions that shape their decisions, relationships, and sense of self.  Over time, these patterns gradually emerge within the therapeutic relationship itself, where they can be understood not only intellectually, but emotionally and experientially. This process often leads to meaningful and lasting changes in how a person relates, works, loves, chooses, and experiences life.

 
 
 

Psychiatric Evaluation

Davis A. Suskind, MD
a professional corporation
by appointment only: 858-453-8899
offering tele-psychiatry in the San Diego area