Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Essay

In order to overcome behavioral problems such as anxiety, depression or fear, individuals usually communicate their problems or anxieties with their trusted friends or family members. In case of a somewhat complicated problem, a counselor is consulted. These are a relatively simple form of counseling that individuals have been practicing from centuries. However, with the development of modern science and advancements in the field of psychology, theorists have identified some more effective approaches for counseling. Behavioral and Cognitive approaches of counseling have proved to be one of the most effective psychological approaches for a wide range of behavioral problems. These approaches were developed as a result of modern psychological
research and are therefore based on scientific principles. In cognitive behavior therapy, the counseling works closely with the patient in order to identify and evaluate behavioral problems. The focus of this approach is towards the difficulties concerning the relationship between thoughts, feelings and behavior. The therapist relies on the patient for the development of an understanding of the individual’s behavioral problems. As soon as the therapist is able to develop an understanding of the individual’s problem, he or she defines multiple therapy strategies and objectives, which are continuously reviewed and observed. It should here be noted that Behavioral and Cognitive Psychotherapists work with individuals as well as families and groups. (CBT)

Cognitive Behavioral therapy is a form of counseling that focuses on the importance of thinking in determining human actions.
Cognitive behavioral counselors believe that the thinking of an individual influences his or her actions and emotions. Hence, if an individual is experiencing undesirable feelings and behaviors, it is a result of his or her thinking. It is therefore important to identify the thinking, which is the primary cause of undesirable behavior or emotions, and to replace it with productive thoughts that may lead to desirable behaviors. Right now counselors are creating and practicing all sorts of different approaches including Rational Behavior Therapy, Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy, Cognitive Therapy and Rational Living
Therapy. Cognitive behavioral therapy has proved to be an effective tool to overcome several behavioral problems including depression, anxiety, panic attacks and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). In most of the cases, CBT has proved to be a superior method of treatment as compared to other treatments.
Treatment Issues: One of the most important treatment considerations in cognitive behavioral therapy is the length of the treatment. A number of factors affect the length of the treatment. Among these factors, the most important ones include the mental and emotional state of the individual at the time the therapy begins, the nature and rigorousness of the symptoms, affect of the problem on patient’s social life, work performance & daily functioning and finally individual’s expectation from the treatment. Using these factors, a counselor can estimate the length of the treatment. However, it should be noted that some of these factors couldn’t be assessed in the initial stages of the treatment. The second most important consideration is to define strategies for different phases of therapy. Generally, counselors divide the whole process into three major phases. These three phases are remorlization, remediation and rehabilitation.

Remoralization:
Individuals suffering from psychological problems usually suffer from depression and anxiety. As a result of this, they become extremely demoralized. Demoralization not only limits an individual’s ability to work properly but also prevents him or her from responding properly to his or her problems. In order to get the best level of results from psychotherapy, this feeling of hopelessness should first be removed. Counselors initially direct their efforts towards boosting patient’s morale.

Remediation:
Once the morale of the patient is heightened, counselors divert their attention towards the symptoms of the problem. It is because of these symptoms that an individual experiences psychological problems and feels demoralized. Therefore, it is important to identify those symptoms and take necessary steps for their remediation. During this phase, counselors focus on patient’s ability to handle problems in order to remedy the symptom and to bring relief to the patient. This process is slow and requires several meetings between the patient and the counselor.

Rehabilitation:
The rehabilitation phase is focused towards the replacement of troublesome and disturbing thinking of the patient with that of a productive thought. During this phase, counselors teach the patient to adopt new and improved ways to deal with difficult life situations such as a problematic relationship and unfriendly work environment. The rehabilitation process is quite slow and usually takes a considerably long time. However, it should be noted that the length of this phase is dependent on seriousness of the case and willingness of the patient to bring improvement.

Cognitive behavioral therapies are based on the notion that it is not the external environment but an individual’s thinking that influences his or her actions and feelings.
Therefore, an individual’s behavior and feelings can be controlled and modified to some extent. Hence, a counselor initiates his or her treatment with a belief that the thinking pattern of the patient, suffering from a given psychological problem, can be changed. Another common feature of different CBT approaches is that they bring results in a very short span of time and their effects are long term. On the other hand, other methods of therapy can even take years to bring the desirable result. In case of CBT, the mutual effort made by the patient and the therapist fastens the process and brings the results
earlier.
While considering different treatment issues for cognitive behavior therapy, it is important to keep in mind that development of a close and strong relationship between the therapist and the patient is necessary for the success of the therapy. A positive relationship between the therapist and the patient not only allows the patient to regain his or her self-confidence but also motivates him or her to actively participate in the process. The result of this positive relationship building is that the recovery of the patient is faster and the process becomes shorter. It is usually believed that CBT is in fact a collaborative effort, which demands the attention of the therapist as well as the patient. A therapist works closely with the patient to identify his personal objectives and goals.

One of its most important assumptions is that an individual’s thinking influences his or her actions and emotions and therefore he or she can learn certain behaviors by changing his or her thinking. Therefore, the primary objective of cognitive behavioral therapy is to help the patient in learning an improved way of thinking and effectively handling with undesirable emotions and behavior.