Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

 

Sometimes conditions like depression, anxiety, and trauma arise from unhealthy thought patterns that have developed over years. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) can help clients who are highly motivated to change and are willing to work independently. It’s great for people who want practical results without a lot of digging into the past, which can be off-putting for some.

How Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Works

CBT helps clients increase their awareness of negative thought patterns and actively work to change them. Over a limited course of therapy sessions, clients learn how to identify the unhelpful thinking habits – their inner negative scripts – that cause their unhappiness. They learn to understand how thoughts affect mood and how to quiet their inner critic.

In addition to sessions with the therapist, clients may have homework. They practice techniques for dealing with the negative thoughts or destructive habits that are impacting their lives. Clients may use a variety of tools to recognize and relearn their thought patterns. These include specific exercises given to them by the therapist, journaling, mindfulness, and relaxation. Clients spend time working on their own outside of therapy sessions, then review the results with a therapist. The toolkit of techniques learned in therapy can serve again and again in clients’ lives, even after therapy ends. Clients spend a limited time in therapy – roughly 16 sessions – focused on concrete activities. CBT is practical and effective therapy for motivated, active clients.

Learn more about Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) here.