Initial Steps in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) Your therapist and you will take time identifying troubling situations, emotions and beliefs, while monitoring any self-talk, rumination or catastrophizing that takes place.
CBT is goal oriented therapy; therefore you and your therapist will determine what to focus on each session. They may encourage journaling or noting down negative thoughts to replace with more constructive ones.
Identifying Problems
Cognitive behavioral therapy begins by identifying your issues. This may involve keeping an activity diary and looking for patterns. If, for instance, something distressful occurs and you immediately jump to negative conclusions and exaggerate the severity of it, your therapist can help identify this pattern and change it.
Your therapist will also help identify predisposing factors, such as genetics or life events, that make you more susceptible to cognitive distortions like filtering, all-or-nothing thinking and overgeneralizing. There are 15 common cognitive distortions such as these.
cognitive behavioral therapy requires your participation and dedication; between sessions you’ll receive “homework” to do to practice the skills taught during therapy sessions.
Observing Your Thoughts
Cognitive behavioral therapy requires paying close attention to our thoughts. You may be required to keep a journal or complete thought records wherein you identify negative automatic thoughts and learn to recognize them as such.
Your doctor may suggest practicing mindfulness meditation, a technique in which you observe your thoughts without judgment and allow them to pass by naturally, detaching yourself from their impact on your mood and making room for positive thinking. This helps create distance from thoughts that negatively influence mood so they don’t as adversely impact it.
Other techniques include exposure therapy, where your therapist gradually exposes you to anxiety-inducing activities or situations over a period of time – this approach may be particularly useful for people suffering from phobias and obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). Furthermore, acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), is another great approach which teaches individuals how to be aware of unwanted thoughts without resorting to compulsive acts to suppress them.
Reshaping Negative or Inaccurate Thinking
Once your therapist has an understanding of your circumstances, they can begin helping you adopt healthier thoughts through cognitive restructuring. Common thinking distortions include magnifying and deflating (overestimation and underestimate of severity respectively).
Your therapist may recommend keeping a journal to identify unhelpful or inaccurate thoughts and to challenge and change them with more realistic ones. In addition, this journal can also help identify patterns of negative thinking which you can challenge by writing out thoughts in an accurate format such as journaling. You will develop skills to cope with difficult situations like chronic illness, grief and anger management as well as symptoms associated with mental health disorders in healthy ways; your therapist may suggest strategies like setting SMART goals.
Learning New Skills
CBT is a problem-oriented therapy approach, focused on changing distressing thoughts and behaviors. Therapists may help people develop new skills outside of therapy sessions such as learning how to calm down or avoid triggers for their addictions.
Someone suffering from social anxiety could try easing themselves into anxiety-provoking situations slowly, practicing role playing to prepare for interactions, and using techniques like deep breathing or progressive muscle relaxation to lower anxiety levels.
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) has proven its efficacy at treating many mental health disorders by emphasizing practical changes. CBT can aid with anxiety disorders, depression and addictions while simultaneously increasing self-control, perceptions of personal efficacy and coping abilities.
Setting Goals
Setting ambitious and empowering goals can help motivate patients to work past their obstacles, and one of the main functions of psychotherapists or counselors is helping their clients set these objectives.
Self-monitoring may also help, which involves tracking behaviors or symptoms over time and helping the client reshape negative or inaccurate thinking patterns as well as managing depression or anxiety symptoms.
Goal setting should be tailored specifically to each person and should be both measurable and realistic. Establishing SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and timely) goals can be especially helpful; having a deadline can increase motivation. This process may last anywhere from five-20 sessions with a therapist or counselor.
