Learning Through the Lens: The Power of Video in ISTDP Training

Dr. Sona Mehta reflects on the importance of video-based case study learning and how it transforms therapist training.

Most psychotherapy training relies on case notes, theoretical readings, and classroom discussion. But ISTDP training takes a different route—one that’s more intimate, real, and radically effective: video-based learning.

As a teacher and practitioner, I’ve seen firsthand how reviewing actual recorded therapy sessions:

• Reveals the non-verbal micro-signals a patient gives off.

• Sharpens the therapist’s ability to spot defenses as they emerge.

• Demonstrates what “breakthrough moments” actually look like—not in theory, but in practice.

This visual learning style mirrors how Dr. Habib Davanloo refined ISTDP—watching hundreds of hours of sessions to uncover consistent patterns of healing.

Video training brings you into the therapy room, so you not only understand the process—you feel it. It’s the closest you can get to supervised clinical experience before seeing clients yourself.

🎥 Join one of our upcoming workshops where we review anonymized patient sessions in a safe, ethical, and structured setting.[View Upcoming Workshops]