The Benefits of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

As a psychotherapist and a longtime patient of psychotherapy, I have had the good fortune of receiving both training and treatment in numerous schools of cutting edge psychotherapies including Cognitive Behavioral, Gestalt and Psychodynamic therapies. These experiences have helped me determine which therapies are most effective to integrate into my work with my clients. Although I am primarily a Gestalt therapist, integrating Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) has been extremely helpful for many of my clients.

The Cognitive Component: Automatic Thought Patterns and Self Talk

The cognitive component of CBT focuses on helping you identify your particular “automatic thought patterns” which are the recurring negative or self defeating thoughts you have. You are then taught methods for challenging these thoughts and/ or considering alte
ative ways of thinking. CBT helps you tune in to how you talk to yourself in your head (kindly? critically? with a negative spin on everything..?) Most of us have a rambling “inner critic” which negates what we want to do rather than motivating us. Being unaware of what we’re telling ourselves (it’s like a nasty tape playing over and over), we don’t see how we’re living OUT OF these thoughts and stories by reacting to them or trying to disprove them, rather than observing what they are telling us and seeing if they are in fact helpful to us. Common themes for self talk include: not being good enough, that we SHOULD be doing something we don’t want to do or that we have to be perfect at something. When you become aware of something – it’s no longer automatic and then you can make a different choice.

The Behavioral Component

The behavioral component of CBT involves collaboratively designing situations with your therapist for you to practice both in and out of session (also known as “exposure therapy”) which challenge your automatic assumptions by having you face and master those situations you fear. This part of therapy is very effective in helping people master their anxieties and regain their lives. Exposure is often the only thing that helps a person shift from talking to action. In many situations, it is in the experience that we change as opposed to in the talking about how to change.

The upside of CBT is that it can help you learn the “how to” in changing unwanted behaviors rather than just keeping you on the why. While most therapies share their belief that awareness will set you free, oftentimes clients are unable to move further and take the next step to making the changes they so wish to see and behavioral work is essential in this way.

I am a huge proponent of CBT and use it regularly in my practice. Sometimes CBT is enough, but sometimes deeper work is needed on understanding the origins of these beliefs and how they have come to serve some function in your life.

Stacey Klein, LCSW is a psychotherapist in private practice in New York, NY. For further information please go to www.therapyinmanhattan.com