Good Example Of Essay On Cognitive Therapy

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a form of psychotherapy that can help an individual solve his or her challenges by changing the way they behave and think. It talks about how individuals think about themselves, other people and the world. It also talks about how what the individuals do affect their behavior and thoughts (Spiegler & Guevremont, 2010).). I believe that cognitive behavioral therapy the best solution to the many kinds of problems that people experience such as anxiety and depression.
CBT has been proved to be effective to people of all ages, that is, from children to older adults. In addition, it is effective to people with different levels of income and education and various cultural backgrounds. It works well when used for both individual and group formats. In its design, CBT is practical, quick and goal oriented. It provides people with long-term skills that keep them healthy. CBT helps individuals to focus on the manner in which they evaluate and interpret the activities around them and determine the effects of these perceptions on their emotions. CBT can help review childhood events and experiences. Such review helps people address and understand emotional upset that came up earlier in life.
During a cognitive behavioral therapy session, a patient is taught how to change their behaviors and thoughts. This change is a very significant step in the patient’s transformation process. In addition, it is important because, in any given event or situation, people have feelings and thoughts and behave in a certain way about it. These actions, feelings and thoughts influence and interact with each other. CBT is known to work because it is based on research.
Unlike other talking treatments, cognitive behavioral therapy focuses on the here and now difficulties and problems. Although it is sometimes used to address the influence of our pasts on our lives, cognitive behavioral therapy mostly focuses on the methods to improve an individual’s mental well-being now. CBT defines that our emotions are not the result of an event but rather how we interpret that particular event. Interpretation in this context means our thoughts and the meaning we give to that particular event.
In a CBT session, patients’ problems are solved on the basis the way we feel is linked to our thoughts about a situation and not simply the situation’s nature. The patients are made to understand that what people think can contribute to emotional problems such as anxiety and depression. From this particular point, therefore, the patients are able to understand their problems and develop solutions. In addition, CBT teaches patients how to stand back from their thinking and consider situations from different viewpoints.
Although there is a similar framework for treating the various emotional problems in cognitive behavioral therapy, the strategies and approach vary. The strategies used are tailored to solve a specific condition. As a result, a comprehensive solution to every patient’s problem is usually in place by the end of the therapy. Cognitive behavioral therapy can also be useful to look at the way people look at how their feelings and thoughts affect their bodies.
Cognitive behavioral therapy is an effective therapeutic approach because it is structured. The CBT treatment sessions involve learning new ways to understand and think about the client’s symptoms. As a result, the sessions are structured in such a way that the client can review the new ways to establish and come up with new ones. To explain this structure, we can recognize the eight steps to the process of behavioral therapy. The first step involves clarifying the problem. In this step specific example of the problem should be defined. For instance, why the client’s colleague was promoted at work and the client was left out. In the second step, the initial treatment goals are set. The treatment goals set should be measurable and realistic.
The third step involves treating one problem at a time. The therapist should inquire from the client the problem they would like to focus on first. In the fourth step, the conditions that maintain the problematic behavior should be identified. This step involves establishing the baseline. That is, figuring out what the behavior looks like. In the fifth step, the treatment plan should be designed. The components of the treatment plan should be identified and defined. The sixth, seventh and eight steps involve; implementation of the treatment plan, evaluation of the success of the treatment and the engagement in follow-up assessment consecutively.
I also prefer cognitive behavioral therapy because it is collaborative. Since through the therapy the client learns new things, the process is usually very active. Both the therapist and the clients work on helping the client understand the symptoms and ways to manage them. The client can also participate in and out of session in order to achieve positive changes. CBT is also time-limited. People with anxiety problems, for instance, have between eight to 20 sessions with their therapists. Cognitive behavioral therapy is not a life-long process. The process involves teaching the client how to become their own therapist. Once the client learns the new skills, masters them and sees positive changes in their lives, they are released from therapy to manage their problems on their own.
Cognitive behavioral therapies’ objective is to make the patient get better and not feel better. CBT corrects the primary assumptions that are behind the patient’s problems. As a result, long-term results are formulated since the problems’ causes are corrected. At the end of CBT session, therefore, the client’s problems are usually defined and solved. Cognitive behavioral therapies cut across cultures. That is, the laws of human behavior that they are based on are universal. In addition, the therapies focus on the goals of the client. In CBT, therapists do not attempt to impose their own goals on their clients.
CBT involves a crucial network of support which is very essential. During the recovery process, cognitive behavioral therapy gives clients a support network to depend on. Such a support network is helpful in preventing clients’ instances of relapse when dealing with some problems. In CBT, therapists provide positive encouragements which prevent the clients from falling back to their problematic behavioral patterns.
Cognitive behavioral therapy is as effective as medication in treating some disorders of the mental health. In addition, CBT has proved to be effective even where medication alone fails to work. Patients who go through CBT acquire practical, useful and helpful strategies that they can incorporate into their everyday life. These strategies help the patients cope with future difficulties and stresses even after the treatment has finished.
When the patient in CBT is an addict, the therapy can help them develop more positive thought patterns. Most addicts suffer from negative thought patterns. These thoughts contribute to feelings of helplessness. Positive thinking imposed on them during CBT sessions can change the negative thought patterns. In addition, their self-esteem is enhanced. Low self-esteem is regarded as one of the underlying factors of addiction. CBT can help addicts improve their self-image.

References

Spiegler, M.D., & Guevremont, D.C. (2010). Contemporary Behaviour Therapy (Fifth Edition). London: Cengage Learning.