Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is a talking therapy aimed at helping clients manage their problems. The essential core of CBT is the focus on the connection, and healthy change, between the way someone feels, thinks and acts.
Situation: Negative thought + Unpleasant feeling = Negative behaviour + Negative consequence
CBT Situation: Positive thought + Pleasant feeling = Positive behaviour + Positive consequence
CBT aims to find practical habits in helping you cope with life’s problems, in more positive ways. It been proven helpful for people who struggle with depression, anxiety, anger, panic attacks, phobias, low self-esteem at either extreme or mild degrees, with young children, teenagers, young and older adults.
What Is Cognitive Behavioural Therapy?
CBT is an evidence-based (supported by research and scientific studies) psychotherapeutic treatment that helps people learn how to identify and change negative thought patterns that have a negative influence on behaviour and feelings.
Working with a psychologist through CBT means that the work is focused on identifying, challenging and replacing these negative and destructive thoughts with more objective, helpful and realistic thoughts. A typical outline of CBT work follows below:
CBT outline: Identifying Negative Thoughts -> Practicing New Skills -> Goal-Setting -> Problem-Solving -> Self-Monitoring
Benefits
CBT work allows you to participate in healthier thinking patterns by becoming aware of the negative, destructive and unrealistic thoughts.
Tends to be a short-term treatment option; improvements can be seen from 5 sessions and more.
The aim is for the client to learn new healthier skills to apply in their daily life without the help of a mental health professional, now and in the future.
It has been found to be effective in face-to-face as well as in-person sessions.
Can be used with clients not in need of medication.
One of the most researched types of therapy, in part, because treatment is focused on highly specific goals and results can be measured relatively easily.
You can read more about CBT here.