Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Introduction
Cognitive Behavioral
Therapy, or CBT for short, is a particular method or technique that emphasizes
action-based solutions for therapy clients. Individuals are encouraged to
relate their behavior to their emotions in order to understand where the
problem lies and take action on the situation. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
treatments are individualized to address the symptoms of each individual
seeking treatment and aims to target specific disorders including addiction,
depression, anxiety, personality disorders and more. This particular type of therapy is widely used
and considered to be one of the most popular and effective treatments for many
conditions.
Goals of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
The main goal of Cognitive
Behavioral Therapy is to act upon psychological distress and reduce damaging
behaviors caused by this distress. In other words, patients undergoing CBT can
expect to observe a change in their behavior over the course of treatment and
will start thinking and reacting differently to particular situations that may
have caused psychological distress in the past. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
offers a way to promote self-help for individuals.
When is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Used?
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
is mostly used to treat issues considered as behavioral issues and/or
personality disorders. For example, conditions normally treated with CBT
include substance abuse, sleep disorders, eating disorders, social phobia,
anxiety disorders, low self-esteem and more. It is also interesting to note
that Cognitive Behavioral Therapy has shown results surpassing those of
pharmaceutical treatment for different types of depression, including severe
forms of depression and is now considered the primary treatment for patients
suffering from schizophrenia. Some studies have also shown that CBT can help
patients who are triggered by biological factors, such as a severe illness or
virus.
Patients in both clinical
and non-clinical environments can make good use of this particular type of
treatment as it emphasizes the positive outcomes of self-help and
homework-based therapy.
How Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Works
The aim of Cognitive
Behavioral Therapy is primarily to identify new ways of reacting to
difficulties that may trigger the negative behaviors impacting the patient’s
daily life. The first step is to establish a trusting relationship between the
patient and his or her therapist, as they will both be working together in an
effort to change behaviors and reactions to stimuli in the patient’s life. The
patient will be asked to reflect and identify behavioral patterns as well as
techniques of coping and adjustment when confronted with external stimuli that
may trigger negative behavior.
CBT separates itself in two
major components: Cognitive Therapy and Behavioral Therapy. The cognitive
aspect of this particular type of therapy is to encourage the patient to be
more aware of their thought process and actions. On the other hand, the
behavioral component focuses on developing tools and techniques to alter the
behaviors triggered by their thoughts or feelings. CBT patient can expect to be
in treatment for an average of 16 sessions, as it is considered to be a brief,
time-limited therapy. After each session, patients can be expected to go home
with homework, or personal work to complete. Since Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
aims to promote self-help and the independence of the patient, individuals are
expected to complete assignments on their own time, such as writing journals,
using relaxation techniques throughout the day, distraction from the stimulus
and breathing control, for example. Patients are expected to take small steps
towards the fulfillment of a larger goal in order to entirely change their
behavioral issue – this means that little by little, individuals will be asked
to confront the issue and use the techniques discussed in therapy to ensure a
positive outcome when faced with situations that trigger the disorder or
problem at hand. Over time, patients will develop positive and helpful ways of
thinking or reacting to a certain situation or problem and will eventually be
able to better cope and even suppress negative reactions to the stimulus.
Criticisms of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
is slowly becoming a new standard in therapy practice. Therapist in the United
Kingdom and other countries have been widely using CBT with great success,
which in turn encouraged therapists within the United States to start adopting
this method as well over the past few decades and its impact and usefulness is
getting more recognition as studies and data are released.
References
Heslop, K.(2008). Cognitive behavioural therapy. Practice Nurse, 35(4), 42.
Sloan, G.(2008). Cognitive behavioural therapy explained. Nursing Standard, 22(45),30.
Sudak, D.(2012). Cognitive behavioral therapy for depression. The Psychiatric Clinicsof North America, 35(1), 99-110.
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