What is CBT - Cognitive Bahavioural Therapy?

CBT is based on the view that stressful states such as depression, anxiety and anger are often maintained or exacerbated by exaggerated or biased ways of thinking. CBT focuses on the links between what a person thinks about themselves or a situation (past, present or future) and how this affects the way they feel and behave. The patient and therapist work together to understand and change the ways of thinking that are causing distress or making it hard to live a normal life. In the UK and USA today, many thousands of patients are receiving CBT treatment at any one time. It is particularly effective in treating anxiety disorders, notably OCD, panic disorders and PTSD. The National Institute of Mental Health (USA) as in The Department of Health and the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) – in the UK recommend CBT as the psychological treatment of choice. The development of these effective, specific treatments was associated with important theoretical advances in the field of psychopathology. With a great deal of experimental research ongoing, CBT methods have since been refined and extended to a wider range of psychological disorders. How does it work?  Although there are many variants of CBT, all focus on problematic patterns of thinking and behaviour. Misinterpreting situations or symptoms undermines how people cope with life, and abnormal patterns of behaviour exacerbate and reinforce these problems. CBT aims to break this cycle by encouraging people to examine their thinking and assumptions. Beliefs are treated as hypotheses to be tested, and the therapist helps the patient to explore alternative interpretations. For example, healthy people with panic disorder tend to misinterpret an increase in heart rate and tightness in the chest – perhaps caused by stress, worry, suppressing difficult feelings or even excess caffeine – as a sign of danger. This leads to a state of panic and often avoidance behaviour as a measure of safety and in the long-run exacerbating the fear. The therapist encourages the client to examine their beliefs, modify their response and collect alternative evidence that demonstrate these are indeed quite normal and safe. Everyone’s thought processes are different. For example, the thinking of people with depression often revolves around themes of loss, humiliation, failure and worthlessness. So while everyone’s treatment will be different, the therapist can home in on the most likely causes of the illness, and use techniques devised specifically to reduce their impact. How long does it take? A typical course of CBT consists of 6 to 20 sessions, this will vary depending on the condition of the patient. In my experience of treating patients, there are times when this has been achieved in 2 sessions! This would largely depend on the patient’s motivation and commitment(not intelligence) to participate and practice outside the therapy session. Do not suffer alone anymore, help is just a phone call away. Look forward to hearing from you. Manjit