cognitive behavioural therapy

[ed miliband]

i'm getting this now, after posting a few times in the past about how i go into phases of what i guess is 'low mood': apathy, lack of energy, anxiety, and so on.

i'm wondering if anyone has any experience of cbt, and if anyone can shed any light on what it actually is. in a way i'm quite sceptical, because the sheet the therapist gave me basically made it out to be a form of "self help", and our discussion revolved around how she'd give me weekly tasks to do and then we'd discuss them in the sessions. i can see how this is useful in many respects, but then i've read that cbt is used in everything from the treatment of insomnia to the treatment of schizophrenia. seems a bit odd to me; i def don't want to be drugged up, but i'm also put off by the new-agey-ness of its presentation - but then it wouldn't be used in the treatment of some serious disorders if it wasn't sound, right?

cheers.

[Quail]

I've had CBT for anxiety, bulimia and now for some other stuff. It basically seems to be identifying problematic thought processes (vicious cycles, negative/irrational thoughts, etc.) and figuring out what you can do differently to manage those thoughts better in future. I have to say that so far I haven't found it very helpful because I'm quite good at identifying the problems and working out solutions but I find it next to impossible to put anything into practice.

[Mass Grave Aesthetics]

For me, CBT has been helpful when it comes to anger management and dealing with anxiety. However, it was not that useful against my depression and melancholy. CBT is certainly worth a try IMO. Just be patient and give it some time and effort. It´s certainly preferable to medication and 12- step groups.

[The Jay]

It's basically used to let you gather your own data on how you feel and respond to different stimuli. This lets you ferret out the different cognitive distortions you hold and attempt to correct them. That's what it did for me, and I was in an all day outpatient program for a bit.

[ed miliband]

thanks guys.

i think like quail my problem is putting things into pratice. often i know what is wrong, but i lack the ability - and i mean physically and mentally - to do anything about it.

but i think it's important to approach this with an open mind anyway.

[Comrade Jandar]

I had it for severe OCD. It was definitely a ***** but sometimes it's the only answer. Good luck and message me any time if you have questions/want advice.

[¿Que?]

Well, my opinion is that psychotherapy in general is somewhat priviledge. IIRC, CBT is not ongoing therapy, but usually limited to a program of a specific number of sessions. So, it has specific goals in mind, most notably you thinking you've made progress at the end. Also, I think some of the strategies are good, like actively encouraging self examination as opposed to passively accepting your general perception of yourself.

I generally dislike how therapy tends to be so disconnected from the general context. I also feel that sometimes therapists do not recognize that some fears are due to real dangers.

[Hermes]

If it doesn't work out, or they start prescribing medication, you should try and find out if there are any psychologists near you who offer Gestalt therapy. It wasn't incredibly useful to me, but that's because I'm terrible at talking anyway. It's basically talk-therapy, with a strong emphasis on developing a relationship between you and the doctor, etc.

(of course, I don't know what kind of area you live in, or what resources you have available)

[Thirsty Crow]

i'm wondering if anyone has any experience of cbt, and if anyone can shed any light on what it actually is.
Yep:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r7oCDbDebDA :D

Sorry, couldn't really help it. But actually one of my close friends is a psychologist, so I'll ask her to clarify on this therapy. Stay tuned.

[human strike]

It has very obvious limitations, but CBT proved helpful for me with anxiety and depression. You have to will it to work though - it depends very much on your cooperation.

[ed miliband]

another question, when i'm done with the sessions the local health authority or whoever won't say 'he's done, get him off the list...' or whatever, will they? i mean, will they still provide a support network, follow-up appointments to monitor progress, etc. or, once my six sessions are down will that be it?

[MotherCossack]

I've had CBT for anxiety, bulimia and now for some other stuff. It basically seems to be identifying problematic thought processes (vicious cycles, negative/irrational thoughts, etc.) and figuring out what you can do differently to manage those thoughts better in future. I have to say that so far I haven't found it very helpful because I'm quite good at identifying the problems and working out solutions but I find it next to impossible to put anything into practice.


thanks guys.

i think like quail my problem is putting things into pratice. often i know what is wrong, but i lack the ability - and i mean physically and mentally - to do anything about it.

but i think it's important to approach this with an open mind anyway.

I quite agree!!!!
I have had more bleeding therapy than you couild shake a stick at....... got pretty damned good at talking about why i was such a fuck-up. learned exactly what it was that had led to my collossal mal-function.
even developed strategies for how i could hope to move on..... resolve issues that had been preventing my progress.....

Did any of it make a blind bit of difference?????
what do you think??? Course it did not. I just went on and on chatting about it, without changing a damned thing!

Art therapy is the only thing that has done anything for me..... Dont ask me how it works..... no idea, but it seems pretty damned good.

[Lev Bronsteinovich]

I am a clinical psychologist and psychotherapist. I don't use CBT as a primary mode of therapy, but aspects of it are useful. The basic theory behind it is that humans have these maladaptive automatic thoughts in response to given situations that lead to anxiety, depression and other pathological states. If you can change the thinking, you can influence the emotional state in a positive way.

For what it is worth, there is a lot of empirical research that verifies it's utility, particularly in treating anxiety disorders. That being said, psychotherapy research has fairly significant limitations. And it certainly does not work for everybody. If you would like to discuss this further, feel free to send me a private message.

[MotherCossack]

you know what......
sometimes I just wish I was normal!
My sister for example...
she is, by virtue of being my sister, genetically pretty similar.....
obviously we had the same kind of upbringing-ish.... [although i am sure that being 2 years younger and.... well... more expected, not such a terrible inconvenience, or a hugely damaging rocker of boats like me, my sister had a much better reception from the start.]
our social and economic status was, well, identical.....
yet....... we are like .... night and day..... light and dark...... sweet and sour...... hot and cold..... laugh and cry..... yes and no.....

maybe it had a bit to do with how we were treated by our carers ....
maybe we just had different needs.... hers were met, mine less so....
maybe i am just a less functional, less effective, less worthy person.

...i dont know....

[Lev Bronsteinovich]

you know what......
sometimes I just wish I was normal!
My sister for example...
she is, by virtue of being my sister, genetically pretty similar.....
obviously we had the same kind of upbringing-ish.... [although i am sure that being 2 years younger and.... well... more expected, not such a terrible inconvenience, or a hugely damaging rocker of boats like me, my sister had a much better reception from the start.]
our social and economic status was, well, identical.....
yet....... we are like .... night and day..... light and dark...... sweet and sour...... hot and cold..... laugh and cry..... yes and no.....

maybe it had a bit to do with how we were treated by our carers ....
maybe we just had different needs.... hers were met, mine less so....
maybe i am just a less functional, less effective, less worthy person.

...i dont know....
I would point out that you are not trying to be screwed up -- you are trying to be well. Some things about the way you learned to manage the world, your life, etc., are maladaptive. I am sure you come by it honestly, this is not about character. Since you've had a lot of therapy that has not apparently helped a whole lot, I won't tell you to seek more, although it does matter a lot who you see. Some reading that might at least shed some light on some of the stuff you do, "Shame and Pride," by Donald Nathanson. He's a popularizer of Silvan S. Tomkins' Affect Theory. It's pretty well written and accessible (especially compared to, say, Marx).

You are different than your sister. That's not unusual. It's nice for her that she's had an easier road. I hope you find some ways to make things better for yourself, comrade.