This article is for you if you feel a bit lost, overwhelmed, or simply tired of something that keeps looping in your head. If you don’t really have the energy or desire to start a “real” long-term therapy, or if it feels expensive, complicated, not for you. Sometimes, all we need is a small boost, a quick insight, a space to lay down what feels heavy. This text is also here for caregivers, young adults, and anyone who wants to discover brief, simple, and accessible forms of support.
When we hear the word therapy, we often imagine a long journey, sometimes even something a little solemn. But there are other approaches—lighter, more flexible… and just as powerful. Today, I want to tell you about two formats that can really help without asking you to commit for life: Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) and microtherapy.
It’s a short-term therapy, born in the 1980s thanks to Steve de Shazer and Insoo Kim Berg. The central idea? You are not your problem. You are much more than that. You already have within you resources, ideas, and moments when things were going a little better. The therapist’s role is to help you remember them and mobilize them.
No need to recount your whole childhood. The goal here is: what do you want to change? What already works a little? And what small steps could you take right now?
Generally, this takes place over just a few sessions (between 1 and 10). It’s short, concrete, and often very liberating.
A systematic review by Gingerich & Peterson (2013, Case Western Reserve University) analyzed 43 clinical studies on this method. The result? SFBT is at least as effective as other approaches for difficulties such as anxiety, mild depression, family conflicts… with a bonus: it’s often faster and cheaper.
Even shorter, more targeted, more focused. Microtherapy is a quick response to a moment of doubt, stress, or confusion. It can take many forms:
No need to commit for several weeks. You ask your question, share your block, and receive an insight or a small tool to help you move forward.
A review by Lattie et al. (2022, Northwestern University) shows that even a single well-designed micro-intervention can significantly reduce anxiety and improve well-being. Another study by Ruzek and colleagues (Stanford University, 2020) confirms it: these small digital boosts can have a real impact, especially when they are well targeted… and when there is at least a minimum of human connection.
Both approaches are brief, practical, and respectful of your rhythm. But they don’t play quite the same role.
Solution-Focused Brief Therapy usually takes place over several sessions, either online or in person. It involves a genuine therapeutic relationship and allows you to work in depth on a personal goal: regaining confidence, navigating a life transition, restoring balance, etc. It’s a more structured format, where you’re actively accompanied in your steps.
Microtherapy, on the other hand, is more occasional: it often comes down to a single exchange—sometimes written, sometimes on video. It’s ideal when you’re facing a specific block, a moment of uncertainty, or a passing hesitation. The connection with the therapist is often briefer, sometimes minimal, but it can still be enough to spark a shift or shed light on a situation.
One doesn’t exclude the other. You can start with microtherapy to test this lighter format, then move on to more continuous support if you feel the need. Or do the opposite. It’s up to you, depending on what you’re going through here and now.
Microtherapy and Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) are not suitable for every situation. If you’re going through an intense period of distress, such as severe depression, suicidal thoughts, generalized anxiety disorder, deep trauma, or personality disorders, these approaches may not be enough.
A systematic review by Lattie et al. (2022) shows that digital micro-interventions can be effective for mild to moderate difficulties in students, but much less so in cases of severe clinical suffering. As for SFBT, although validated for many difficulties (Kim, 2008), it proves less effective when the person struggles to formulate clear goals or needs to revisit traumatic experiences (Corcoran & Pillai, 2009).
In these cases, a more in-depth, regular, and potentially multidisciplinary psychotherapeutic follow-up is strongly recommended. And above all, you don’t have to make this choice alone: talking to a doctor, a psychologist, or calling a support service can help you find the most suitable form of help.
There is no right or wrong answer. It’s you, your need, your timing. Do you just want to take a breather, ask a question, receive a kind response, and move on? Microtherapy can do the job.
Do you want to spark a deeper inner shift, work on a life goal, reconnect with your strengths? SFBT is probably more appropriate. And you can change your mind. Mix. Test. Adjust.
But sometimes, you need to go further. For example, if you wake up every morning with a lump in your throat, if you can no longer function day to day, or if you feel completely drained without knowing why… then it might not just be a “little boost” you need, but a real therapeutic space in depth. Longer-term therapy, multidisciplinary support, or even medical care may then be necessary. And that’s okay. Recognizing this is already a huge step.
Whether you choose microtherapy, solution-focused brief therapy, or another deeper path, what matters most is finding what resonates with you. There isn’t a single “right” way to get better. There is your way.
Sometimes, a simple exchange is enough to bring a bit of clarity into the fog. Sometimes, you need more regular support, presence, structure. And sometimes, we stumble, we test, we change our minds—and that’s perfectly okay.
What I take away, writing this for you, is that there are now forms of support that are flexible, accessible, less intimidating, and still powerful. Ways to dare to speak up, even when you don’t feel “bad enough” to consult, even when you don’t have all the answers.
If this article has helped you see things more clearly, soothed you, or simply made you feel a little less alone, then that’s already a lot. Take care of yourself, at your own pace.
💛 Every step counts. Even the small ones. Even the hesitant ones.
Apolline, for Healing Together 💛
