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To fully understand CBT, it is important to recognize its history as well as the goals, common techniques, risks, and limitations of this method of mental health counseling.
What Is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy?
Cognitive behavioral therapy focuses on individual perception. The underlying assumption of this form of therapy is that the personal experience is more closely tied to an individual’s perception than it is tied to any given situation itself. This means that focusing on perception and addressing the way someone thinks about a situation can help the individual overcome particularly stressful or even traumatic experiences.
CBT is a highly goal-oriented type of psychotherapy. Sessions are designed to help individuals reconceptualize experiences and process events in a way that helps them better understand their own perceptions and therefore their own level of control over their personal perceptions.
The cognitive behavioral therapy experience is typically customized to the needs of each individual. Most people who seek CBT for mental health support receive counseling for a period ranging from five to 10 months. A standard therapeutic session is approximately 50 minutes long. During this time, the therapist and the client work together to understand the existing thought patterns that are associated with the client’s current problems, and they develop strategies to overcome those concerns. Group counseling is very rarely utilized in cognitive behavioral therapy.
The History of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Beck found that there was a strong connection between thoughts and feelings, and he began helping clients connect their own thought patterns to changes in their emotional status. He developed the term “automatic thoughts” to support this concept. Automatic thoughts are emotion-filled thoughts that happen quickly, simply popping into the mind without any overly complex development. These thoughts have the potential to quickly change the way that someone feels. If not addressed or even recognized, the individual is left with an uncomfortable feeling and an uneasiness about why the feeling exists.
Learn more aboutcognitive behavioral therapy careers.
Goals of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive behavioral therapy is regarded as a short-term method of psychotherapy. Ideally, a client will attend weekly sessions over the course of several months and will then be able to use the strategies and tools discussed in these sessions independently.
On a personal level, the goals of any CBT session may include objectives such as being able to socialize enjoyably; to feel more comfortable conversing or interacting with friends, strangers, or co-workers; to become comfortable forming friendships or intimate relationships; to speak in public; to become more assertive; to overcome performance anxiety; or to overcome any level of depression or trauma. Again, the exact goals of CBT are personalized to the needs of each client.
Common Techniques Used in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
One of the biggest differences between cognitive behavioral therapy and other common types of psychotherapy is the structure of the therapeutic session. Cognitive behavioral therapy is highly structured. A standard session typically follows this protocol:
All of this takes place during a standard 50-minute session. Given the time constraint, sessions are used as a forum for reviewing ideas and checking on progress.
Homework is an essential component to the success of the cognitive behavioral model, and it is up to the client to complete the homework tasks and keep up with the expectations that are agreed upon during each counseling session.
CBT homework often includes thought experiments, worksheets, and other behavioral learning strategies.
Cognitive behavioral therapy works best when an individual wants to focus on a particular problem. The therapist and client work together in their sessions to set goals that will lead to specific outcomes to address the client’s concern. For this reason, cognitive behavioral therapy may not be ideal for someone who is seeking to address vague or uncertain causes of unhappiness.
For individuals facing specific issues and who have particular outcomes in mind, cognitive behavioral therapy is often a successful mode of treatment. Some of the major mental health concerns that CBT can be used to address include:
This list is not comprehensive; rather, it identifies some of the most common mental health concerns for which CBT can be successfully employed. The best way to determine if an issue can be addressed via CBT is for the client and therapist to engage in a consultation regarding the issues at hand and to discuss the potential benefits and outcomes of utilizing the cognitive behavioral therapeutic model for treatment.
Getting the Most Out of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Those who are willing to do the homework, put in the extra effort around the clock, and engage openly and honestly with their therapist while actively seeking solutions to overcome the problems in their lives tend to be most successful with CBT.
Risks and Limitations of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Due to its highly focused structure, cognitive behavioral therapy may not be appropriate for those who have more complex mental health concerns. Similarly, the fundamental role of homework and behavioral learning strategies makes CBT problematic for some individuals, including those with certain types of learning disorders.
Cognitive behavioral therapy is one of the most commonly recommended modes of psychotherapy in Western countries. It takes a highly structured approach to mental health counseling, using a long list of strategies and tools to encourage individuals to overcome particular hardships or obstacles in their life. Aspects of cognitive behavioral therapy are often used in conjunction with other forms of mental health counseling. In some contexts, the use of CBT strategies in an alternative setting is ideal for those who are working to overcome obstacles but who are seeking broader benefits than they can obtain with CBT alone.
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