Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, CBT for short, is an effective method of dealing with certain kinds of problems.The idea behind CBT is simple: how we think affects how we feel and how we behave.

This is not a new idea. The Dhammapada - an ancient Buddhist text- emphasizes how important it is to look at the nature of our thinking if we want  to be happy. 'All that we are is a result of what we have thought.' The Stoics of the Classical world advised a similar approach. CBT dresses up this attitude to life  in the language of modern psychotherapy.

CBT can be done with a therapist or with the help of  books, for example, Mind Over Mood by Dennis Greenberger and Christine A. Padesky. This book summarises it's content on the front cover where it states: Change how you feel by changing the way you think. It contains useful tables that can help you explore how you think about what happens in your life.[Google 'Thought Record Sheet' if you want to see what one looks like.] You start with looking at a situation that upsets you and then proceed to identify the automatic thoughts that arise in connection with it. For example, you may feel nervous when talking to your boss, and notice that your automatic thoughts in this situation are 'I'm useless', 'I'm afraid he'll tell me off' or 'I'm not important enough for him to spend time with.'

Having identified the thoughts the next step is to look at the evidence for and against them rationally. Having done this you proceed to establish a more accurate view of your situation. This may be, in the above example,  that in fact you are demonstrably useful, and that you are valued and liked by your boss.

In practice it can be quite difficult to identify thoughts and feelings. In real life situations events happen fast and you end up feeling a bit puzzled how you got to feel the way you do. A mindful attention can help but that is something easy to recommend but difficult to put into practice. A therapist can help [not necessarily an 'official' CBT practitioner] by facilitating the reasoning process and by keeping you focused on the task in hand. It is very easy, when you are on your own, to meander away from  the problems you are trying to tackle and  for the obvious reason that they are distressing. A counsellor can provide a reassuring presence that can help you stay on track.

All therapies involve the reasoning processes  that are formalised in CBT. There are some close cousins to CBT such as Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy, REBT for short. This works by looking at dysfunctional beliefs and thinking styles. More of this another time. I'm trying to keep my entries to a digestible size.