Psychotherapy and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy - Clivir

: Psychotherapy and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy; Sep 7, 2009

A look into the most common therapeutic approaches to anxiety treatment.

Classroom: What Is Anxiety Attack - Symptoms, Causes And Management

Anxiety treatment usually involves a combination of drugs and therapy. The drugs used to treat anxiety provide no cure and symptoms return soon after stopping use. Therapy has more long-lasting effects. It helps a person understand their anxiety, recognize detrimental thoughts, and work with their condition so that they can better function and find emotional relief.

The most common form of therapy is known as psychotherapy, also known as talk therapy, counseling, psychosocial therapy, or just therapy. It is a general term for the process of treating anxiety disorder by talking about your issues with your mental health provider. Through these sessions, you are able to learn more about your condition and the subsequent emotions, thoughts, and behavior. With newly-found insight gained in psychotherapy you are able to pick up some healthy coping and stress management skills.

Depending on the severity of your disorder, psychotherapy can be completed in a few months, but it can also take longer if needed. There are different types of psychotherapy, including psychodynamic therapy and interpersonal therapy. Your mental health provider will choose a path that's right for your condition.

Cognitive behavior therapy is a very general term for a group of similar psychotherapies. These different approaches include rational emotive behavior therapy; rational behavior therapy; rational living therapy; cognitive therapy; dialectic behavior therapy. Cognitive-behavior therapy combined with monitored medication intake (with a psychiatrist) is considered to be the most successful route for treating many anxiety disorders.

Cognitive-behavior therapy (or CBT) is based on the idea that our feelings and behaviors are caused by our thoughts and not external factors (e.g. people, situations, events). These thoughts are automatic and in the case of anxiety disorders, inaccurate. The idea is if we change the way we think about a given situation, we can feel or act better in that situation. CBT is popular in part because it obtains results are seen quickly; in fact there is an average of only 16 weekly or biweekly sessions while other forms of therapy can take years.

CBT uses homework assignments that increase exposure and thus comfort with things that cause anxiety. The client gives the therapist a list of long-term goals that would signify a more successful life. These include such things as having a healthy social life, doing better in work, and increasing self-confidence. Each session is structured and has a specific agenda that addresses one or more of these goals. These homework assignments encourage patients to practice techniques learned in the real world. The goals will probably not be achieved in the duration of the therapy, but the homework provides stepping stones and helps to break any barriers a client may have to their goals.

The success of CBT is possible only through a good relationship between therapist and client and for the client to be vocal and clear about exactly what they want in life. The therapist does not tell people how to feel, but what to do about the undesirable feelings in certain situations. The aim is to help people stay calm in situations that previously caused anxiety. The calm approach helps people use their knowledge, intelligence, and skills to resolve a problem. When problems are resolved, people can move towards
building relationships, advancing at work, building self-confidence, or whatever it is they want to do.

CBT employs the socratic method. In this method, the therapist asks a lot of questions aimed at not only getting answers that will be useful in therapy, but also helping the client practice self-discovery to learn more about themselves and why they act a certain way.

One of the main challenges to CBT is the burden on the client. Many people find the homework assignments challenging as the usually require people to confront their fears and put themselves in situations that significantly raise anxiety levels. However, this discomfort is necessary for the client to achieve his or her goals and overcome their anxiety.