Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a goal-oriented and problem-focused approach to treating psychological disorders. CBT employs short-term treatments that focus on teaching clients specific skills. The basic idea underlying CBT is that cognitions, emotions, and behaviors are connected and affect one another. A cognitive-behavioral therapist will teach you to intervene in one of these areas, provide you with a new understanding of how particular problems are maintained, and give you a set of tools for addressing your problems.
What tools are in your toolbox?
CBT provides you with a set of tools for dealing with psychological problems.
Relaxation training is a method of altering physiological responses. Heightened anxiety is often accompanied by chronic tension, panic symptoms, abdominal distress, and headaches. Stress and anxiety even intensify our experience of pain. Relaxation skills such as diaphragmatic breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, and guided imagery can be used to reduce physiological arousal. Your therapist will teach you how to apply relaxation to real world situations that are stressful and anxiety producing.
Cognitive restructuring targets irrational, unhelpful, or maladaptive thought patterns that tend to go along with intense or disruptive emotions. It’s not the case that CBT will enable you to eliminate all your negative thoughts! Rather, cognitive restructuring focuses on the thought patterns that are contributing to particular problems. Your therapist will help you to challenge these patterns so that you are able to think in more rational, realistic, and helpful ways about situations.
Exposure exercises are aimed at reducing specific forms of anxiety and enabling you to engage in activities which you have avoided. The goals for exposure are based on the circumstances which are anxiety producing for you. Your therapist will help you develop a plan to start small and gradually work through more challenging situations.
Behavioral activation involves engaging in goal directed activities. In the case of depression, a person will often need encouragement to resume activities.
Ready to get started? You can learn the tools for dealing with problems now and in the future.
The best part about CBT is that you can take the skills with you. In combination, these techniques can be helpful for reducing symptoms and learning to manage situations in a new way. A CBT therapist will help adapt these techniques to your unique situation.
If you would like to learn more or schedule a free phone consultation, please contact Dr. Combs-Lane at the link below.
* The information and resources contained on this website are for informational purposes only and are not intended to assess, diagnose, or treat any medical and/or mental health disease or condition. The use of this website does not imply nor establish any type of therapist-client relationship. Furthermore, the information obtained from this site should not be considered a substitute for a thorough medical and/or mental health evaluation by an appropriately credentialed and licensed professional.*
