What is cognitive behavioral therapy?
By 2021, 15% of people over the age of 18 in the Netherlands felt psychologically unhealthy, more of whom were women than men. Psychological symptoms are most common between the ages of 18 and 34. Psychological symptoms can arise from heredity, unprocessed traumas or stressful periods, for example. It is important to seek help when symptoms negatively affect daily functioning.
There are several ways to reduce symptoms. A common therapy that can be used for various types of mental health symptoms is cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). This article provides more information on what cognitive behavioral therapy is and when it can be used.
What exactly is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)?
CBT is a combination of cognitive therapy and behavioral therapy. Cognitive therapy assumes that thinking affects one’s feelings and behavior. Behavioral therapy assumes that behavior affects how a person feels.
The goal of CBT is to learn to look at and deal with situations differently. Sometimes the thoughts a person has are not realistic, but can negatively affect behavior and feelings.
Therefore, by learning to think differently and more realistically, feelings and behaviors can also change. CBT focuses primarily on the present and less on the past.
CBT often uses G-schedules where thoughts, feelings and behaviors can be examined in a structured way. A G-schema consists of 5 G’s namely the Event, the Thoughts you have about it, the Feelings you feel about it, the Behavior you displayed and the Consequence of it.
With CBT, you are also given assignments to take home that you can work on yourself.
Forms of CBT
There are different types of CBT. CBT is often offered individually, but it can also be done in groups. One form of CBT is schema-focused cognitive behavioral therapy, which targets certain behavioral and thought patterns that determine how a person views himself and the world.
Exposure therapy can also be used during CBT. Here a person is exposed to fears step by step and taught to deal with them differently and to recognize that the fears are not (no longer) real. The goal is that a person will no longer avoid certain situations.
Another form of CBT is Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, which focuses on learning to accept certain thoughts, feelings and situations. This involves learning to focus on the things that are important to you and to free up space and attention for them.
At GGZonline, we offer specialty mental health services.
When can cognitive behavioral therapy be used?
CBT is an effective treatment method for various types of psychological complaints that involve thinking and feeling. CBT can be used, for example, for depression, anxiety disorders, negative self-image, eating disorders, personality disorders, stress, sleep problems, ADHD and addiction. With CBT, a person learns tactics to better cope with these problems and also focuses on relapse prevention to reduce the risk of falling into old patterns of thought and behavior.
Intensive treatment of depression at GGZ online
Do you have symptoms that you think CBT might work? During an online intake interview, the therapists at GGZ online will ask about what symptoms you are experiencing and the severity of these symptoms. The therapist will then see if CBT might be an appropriate therapy for you and the best way to use it. After this, the therapist will create a treatment plan.
Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions or to make an appointment!
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