FDA-Approved & Evidence-Based Non-Medication Treatments for Anxiety, Depression & PTSD

Modern mental health care extends far beyond medication. While medications remain valuable—and sometimes essential—many people are seeking options that support healing from different angles. Today, patients have access to a growing number of FDA-approved digital tools, brain-based treatments, and a wide range of research-backed psychotherapies provided by licensed clinicians.

Below is a guide to these approaches and how they support long-term mental health.

FDA-Approved Digital Therapeutics & Medical Devices

Rejoyn

For: Major Depressive Disorder

A structured smartphone program that teaches coping and mood skills to complement therapy or medication.

DaylightRx

For: Generalized Anxiety Disorder

Delivers CBT-based strategies through short guided sessions that help reduce worry, manage stress, and promote behavioral change.

Somryst

For: Chronic Insomnia

Provides full CBT-I (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia) treatment— retraining sleep patterns, circadian rhythms, and nighttime thinking.

NightWare

For: PTSD-Related Nightmares

A smartwatch that detects distress signals during sleep and gently interrupts nightmares without fully waking the user.

Freespira

For: Panic Disorder & PTSD-Related Panic

A home-based device that uses capnometry to normalize breathing patterns known to trigger panic symptoms, treating the physiology behind panic.

reSET & reSET-O

For: Substance Use Disorders

Structured modules that combine CBT principles and contingency management to support recovery and relapse prevention.

MamaLift Plus

For: Postpartum Depression

Behavioral health support tailored to maternal identity, mood changes, and the transition into new parenthood.

EndeavorRx

For: ADHD

A prescription digital game that trains neural pathways linked to attention and executive functioning.

Flow FL-100 Headset

For: Moderate to Severe Depression

An at-home tDCS (Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation) device stimulating mood-regulating brain regions, used alongside behavioral activation tools.

Evidence-Based Psychotherapies Delivered by Licensed Clinicians

In addition to digital therapeutics, therapy with a trained professional remains one of the most effective non-medication treatments for depression, anxiety, trauma, and emotional dysregulation.

Here are leading therapies supported by research:

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

For: Depression, anxiety, panic & more.

CBT focuses on learning about the association and interplay of thoughts, feelings, behaviors and physical sensations. Developing this insight into ourselves helps us coming up with coping skills when symptoms arise.

Interpersonal Therapy (IPT)

For: Depression.

Addresses how relationship patterns, role transitions, grief, and communication influence mood.

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

For: Anxiety, depression, trauma, and chronic stress.

Helps individuals develop psychological flexibility by learning to allow difficult thoughts and emotions to be present without driving behaviors which allows for allowing other behaviors that are in line with personal values.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)

For: Initially developed to treat Borderline Personality Disorder, but found to be helpful for emotional dysregulation, self-harm behaviors, and chronic stress.

Integrates mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness to build stability and resilience.

Psychodynamic Psychotherapy

For: Mood, anxiety, trauma, and relational patterns.

Explores how past experiences, unconscious feelings, and internal conflicts influence current behaviors, relationships, and emotions—supporting deeper insight and lasting change.

PTSD and Trauma-Focused Therapies

• Prolonged Exposure (PE) Helps reduce avoidance and emotional reactivity by gently discussing and reprocessing traumatic memories.

  
  

• Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) Challenges trauma-related beliefs about safety, trust, guilt, and identity. Can be done with trauma reprocessing or independently working on distorted thoughts without delving into trauma.

  
  

• Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing (EMDR) Uses structured recall paired with bilateral stimulation to resolve traumatic memories stored in the nervous system.

  
  

Expanding the Landscape of Care

These approaches—whether structured psychotherapies, digital programs, or device-based treatments—offer individuals multiple paths to healing.

The benefits include:

• Options beyond or alongside medication

• Skills-building that lasts after treatment

• Trauma-informed strategies

• Care tailored to personal values and lived experiences

Medication can remain part of the picture, but people deserve personalized, multimodal treatment that matches their goals and needs.