Understanding Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT)

This therapy is goal-oriented, which means it breaks down different parts of a problem into smaller pieces and promotes healthier problem-solving and cognitive habits.
Simply put, CBT aims to restructure the negative or distorted thought patterns (maladaptive thoughts) and teaches you practical ways to manage your emotions, thoughts, and external situations.

• Thoughts influence emotions and behaviours.
• Emotions affect how people interpret situations and react to them. 
• Behaviours reinforce thoughts and emotions, creating a cycle.

Techniques and Strategies

CBT employs various techniques and strategies to help you change your habits. Some of those include:

• Cognitive Restructuring: This technique involves identifying and challenging negative thought patterns and replacing them with more realistic and positive ones. It is an excellent way of reducing emotional distress and promoting healthier thinking patterns, providing long-lasting relief.
  
• Behavioural Activation: This technique encourages you to indulge in activities you enjoy and find pleasurable, even when feeling down. It aims to help you gain positive experiences, through active engagement and social interactions.
  
• Exposure Therapy: Exposure therapy involves gradually desensitising you to feared stimuli in a safe and controlled environment. Repeated exposure in a controlled quantity helps reduce the fear response slowly and allows you to gain confidence again.
• Problem-Solving Skills: Problem-solving skills involve defining problems, finding solutions, evaluating those options, and implementing the one that seems best for the situation. This structured approach helps you conceptualise your problems and deal with them effectively.
  
• Mindfulness and Relaxation: Mindfulness and relaxation techniques focus on cultivating present-moment awareness and reducing Anxiety through meditation and deep breathing. It can be inculcated as a lifestyle or a habit in everything you do and helps reduce stress and Anxiety.

Emotional regulation: CBT helps you identify and manage emotions, moods and feelings effectively, reducing mood swings, anger, Depression, etc.

Problem-solving skills: CBT is very goal-oriented. An important aspect of CBT is that it teaches you how to identify your problems, find solutions, choose the appropriate solution, and implement it. This helps you break down your challenges into small parts and work up to a solution.

Healthier relationships: CBT fosters healthier relationships by improving interpersonal communication, developing conflict resolution skills, and strengthening professional relationships.

Conditions Treated by CBT

• Mental Health Disorders
  CBT is a widely used and highly versatile therapy that is used in various cases ranging from Depression, Anxiety, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Schizophrenia, etc. CBT is adaptable to almost all conditions, and the therapist can tailor the therapy to target your specific needs.
• Physical Health Issues
  CBT is also used to treat conditions such as Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), chronic pain, Fibromyalgia, and heart diseases.

The therapist discusses your case with a psychologist or a licensed clinical psychologist and prepares a treatment plan that is comfortable for you.

Throughout the treatment, the therapist helps you identify key issues which affect your daily life. They consistently monitor your progress to ensure the treatment can be adjusted as needed. Additionally, the therapist works with you to define clear and realistic goals. This approach allows you to gain agency in your actions and monitor your progress on your own.

Homework and Skill Application

Homework is an important aspect of CBT. Taking therapy and talking about making a change is one thing, and implementing those therapeutic strategies in real life is another. The therapist may ask you to try therapeutic techniques in everyday life, helping you learn how to use the therapeutic tools effectively in real-life situations.

We are your one-stop solution for all mental health needs. Our integrated model of combined care from psychiatrists and clinical psychologists ensures you receive the top care for your mental health condition without having to wander from one service provider to another.