Solution-focused brief therapy (SFBT) 

Solution-Focused Brief Therapy is a type of problem-solving therapy that focuses on addressing present and future issues in an effort to devise a plan for coping with specific obstacles. This is a goal-oriented therapy in which the symptoms or issues that originally brought the individual to therapy are typically not addressed.

Within the framework of SFBT, the therapist assists the client in creating a future vision of their desires and then helps connect the client to the skills and resources needed to achieve their desired outcome. The counselor may ask what is commonly referred to as the “Miracle Question” in which they might say something like, “If you had a magic wand you could wave to create whatever future you wanted, what would that future look like?” This allows the therapist to first help the client formulate a clear and concise goal.

Once a clear goal is established, the client and therapist will collaboratively form a step by step plan of action to empower the client to reach their goal in a systematic and achievable way.

SFBT is grounded in the belief that many individuals already possess the skills necessary to reach goals they would like to achieve, though they may need assistance identifying and developing such skills. The clinician may prompt the client to identify a previous time in their life when a current issue was either less detrimental or more manageable. The therapist identifies solutions that were present at the earlier time to better assist the client in formulating a current plan of action through application of known skills.

The counselor may reflect back to the client methods that are currently working for them, support the individual in formulating practices to continue using such strategies moving forward, and provide praise for success in carrying out the plan. The individual is safely supported as they experiment with new approaches to solving current problems.

This form of therapy was developed with the intent of helping individuals find solutions to temporary challenges, though the approach has expanded to be applied to issues within family systems, schools and the workplace. SFBT can be used to treat a wide range of issues. It is most often used to address challenges for which the individual already has some idea of possible solutions.

This model is frequently used in conjunction with other therapeutic approaches.  Because this modality focuses on solutions to issues, rather than the reasons behind them, it may be more effective in treating some types of concerns more than others. SFBT may not be a recommended therapy for those experiencing severe mental illness.