Cognitive therapy by A. Beck

Psychology today has wide interest among ordinary people. However, the real techniques and exercises are carried out by specialists who understand what they are using all the methods for. One of the directions when working with a client is cognitive psychotherapy.

Cognitive psychotherapy specialists consider a person as an individual who shapes his life depending on what he pays attention to, how he looks at the world, and how he interprets certain events. The world is the same for all people, but what people themselves think about it can different opinions differ.

In order to know why certain events, sensations, experiences happen to a person, it is necessary to understand his ideas, worldview, views and reasoning. This is what cognitive psychologists do.

Cognitive psychotherapy helps a person deal with his personal problems. These can be individual experiences or situations: problems in the family or at work, self-doubt, low self-esteem, etc. It is used to eliminate stressful experiences as a result of disasters, violence, wars. Can be used both individually and when working with families.

What is cognitive psychotherapy?

Psychology uses many techniques to help a client. One such area is cognitive psychotherapy. What it is? This is a targeted, structured, directive, short-term conversation aimed at transforming a person’s inner “I,” which is manifested in the feeling of these transformations and new patterns of behavior.

That is why you can often come across such a name as cognitive behavioral therapy, where a person not only considers his situation, studies its components, puts forward new ideas for changing himself, but also practices taking new actions that will support new qualities and characteristics that he develops in himself.

Cognitive behavioral psychotherapy performs many useful functions that help healthy people transform their own lives:

1. Firstly, a person is taught a realistic perception of the events that happen to him. Many problems arise from the fact that a person misinterprets the events that happen to him. Together with the psychotherapist, the person reinterprets what happened, now having the opportunity to see where the distortion occurs. Together with production adequate behavior there is a transformation of actions that become consistent with situations.
2. Secondly, you can change your future. It depends solely on the decisions and actions that a person makes. By changing your behavior you can change your entire future.
3. Thirdly, the development of new behavioral models. Here the psychotherapist not only transforms the personality, but also supports it in these transformations.
4. Fourth, consolidation of the result. For a positive outcome to exist, you need to be able to maintain and preserve it.

Cognitive psychotherapy uses many methods, exercises and techniques that are used to different stages. They are ideally combined with other areas of psychotherapy, complementing or replacing them. Thus, the therapist can use several directions at the same time if this will help achieve the goal.

Beck's cognitive psychotherapy

One of the directions in psychotherapy is called cognitive therapy, the founder of which was Aaron Beck. It was he who created the idea that is central to all cognitive psychotherapy - the problems that arise in a person’s life are the wrong worldview and attitudes.

Various events happen in the life of every individual. Much depends on how a person perceives the messages of external circumstances. The thoughts that arise are certain character, provoking corresponding emotions and, as a result, the actions that a person performs.

Aaron Beck didn't think the world was bad, but rather people's views on the world were negative and wrong. They form the emotions that others experience and the actions that are then performed. It is actions that influence how events unfold further in the life of each person.

Mental pathology, according to Beck, occurs when a person distorts external circumstances in his own mind. An example would be working with people who suffered from depression. Aaron Beck found out that everyone depressed people The following thoughts were noted: inadequacy, hopelessness and defeatist attitude. Thus, Beck came up with the idea that depression occurs in those who perceive the world through 3 categories:

1. Despair, when a person sees his future exclusively in gloomy colors.
2. Negative view, when an individual perceives current circumstances exclusively from a negative point of view, although for some people they may cause pleasure.
3. Reduced self-esteem, when a person perceives himself as helpless, worthless, and incompetent.

Mechanisms that help in correcting cognitive attitudes are self-control, role-playing games, homework, modeling, etc.

Aaron Beck has worked with Freeman mostly on individuals with personality disorders. They were convinced that every disorder was the result of certain beliefs and strategies. If you identify thoughts, patterns, patterns and actions that automatically arise in the head of people with a specific personality disorder, then you can correct them, transforming the personality. This can be done by re-experiencing traumatic situations or by using imagination.

In psychotherapeutic practice, Beck and Freeman believed that a friendly atmosphere between the client and the specialist was important. The client should not have resistance to what the therapist is doing.

The ultimate goal of cognitive psychotherapy is to identify destructive thoughts and transform the personality by eliminating them. What is important is not what the client thinks, but how he thinks, reasons, and what mental patterns he uses. They should be transformed.

Methods of cognitive psychotherapy

Since a person’s problems are the result of his incorrect perception of what is happening, inferences and automatic thoughts, the validity of which he does not even think about, the methods of cognitive psychotherapy are:

• Imagination.
• Fighting negative thoughts.
• Secondary experience of childhood traumatic situations.
• Finding alternative strategies for perceiving the problem.

Much depends on the emotional experience that a person has gone through. Cognitive therapy helps with forgetting or learning new things. Thus, each client is invited to transform old patterns of behavior and develop new ones. Here, not only a theoretical approach is used, when a person studies the situation, but also a behavioral one, when the practice of performing new actions is encouraged.

The psychotherapist directs all his efforts to identifying and changing the negative interpretations of the situation that the client uses. So, in depressed state people often talk about how good it was in the past and what they can no longer experience in the present. The psychotherapist suggests finding other examples from life when such ideas did not work, remembering all the victories over your own depression.

Thus, the main technique is to recognize negative thoughts and change them into others that help in solving problems.

Using the method of finding alternative ways acting in a stressful situation, the emphasis is on the fact that a person is an ordinary and imperfect being. You don't have to win to solve a problem. You can simply try your hand at solving a problem that seems problematic, accept the challenge, don’t be afraid to act, try. This will bring more results than the desire to definitely win the first time.

Cognitive psychotherapy exercises

The way a person thinks affects how he feels, how he treats himself and others, what decisions he makes and actions he takes. People perceive one situation differently. If only one facet stands out, then this significantly impoverishes the life of a person who cannot be flexible in his thinking and actions. This is why cognitive psychotherapy exercises become effective.

They exist a large number of. All of them can look like homework when a person consolidates in the conditions real life new skills acquired and developed during sessions with a psychotherapist.

All people from childhood are taught to think unambiguously. For example, “If I can’t do anything, then I’m a failure.” In fact, such thinking limits the behavior of a person who is now not even going to try to refute it.

Exercise "Fifth Column".

• In the first column on a piece of paper, write down the situation that is problematic for you.
• In the second column, write down the feelings and emotions that you have in this situation.
• In the third column, write down the “automatic thoughts” that often flash through your head in this situation.
• In the fourth column, indicate on the basis of what beliefs these “automatic thoughts” flash through your mind. What attitudes are you guided by that makes you think this way?
• In the fifth column, write down thoughts, beliefs, attitudes, positive statements that refute the ideas from the fourth column.

After identifying automatic thoughts, it is proposed to perform various exercises in which a person can change his attitudes by performing actions other than those he did previously. Then it is offered in real conditions perform these steps to see what result is achieved.

Cognitive psychotherapy techniques

When using cognitive therapy, there are actually three techniques used: Beck's cognitive psychotherapy, Ellis's rational-emotive concept, and Glasser's realist concept. The client thinks mentally, performs exercises, experiments, and reinforces models at the level of behavior.

Cognitive psychotherapy aims to teach the client the following:

• Identifying negative automatic thoughts.
• Discovering connections between affect, knowledge, and behavior.
• Finding arguments for and against automatic thoughts.
• Learning to identify negative thoughts and attitudes that lead to incorrect behavior and negative experiences.

Most people expect a negative outcome of events. That's why he has fears, panic attacks, negative emotions, which force him not to act, to run away, to fence himself off. Cognitive psychotherapy helps in identifying attitudes and understanding how they affect a person’s behavior and life. The individual is to blame for all his misfortunes, which he does not notice and continues to live unhappily.

Bottom line

You can even use the services of a cognitive psychotherapist healthy person. Absolutely all people have some kind of personal problems that they cannot cope with on their own. The result of unresolved problems is depression, dissatisfaction with life, dissatisfaction with oneself.

If you want to get rid of an unhappy life and negative experiences, then you can use the techniques, methods and exercises of cognitive psychotherapy, which transforms people's lives, changing it.

Have you noticed that people often behave differently in the same situation? But in some cases, others may react the same way to any irritating factors. This suggests that their perception of the situation coincides. Behavior will depend on the perception of the situation, and views on life are formed throughout a person’s life.

Definition of Cognitive Behavioral Psychotherapy

Cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy or cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy is one of the areas of science that is based on the assumption that the causes of mental disorders are dysfunctional attitudes and beliefs.

This can be said about good habit prepare for tomorrow in order to get ready on time and not be late for school or work. If you fail to do this once, you will have the unpleasant experience of arriving late, for example, for a meeting. As a result of acquiring a negative experience, a person’s subconscious remembers it. When such a situation is repeated, the brain gives a signal or a guide to action to get away from troubles. Or vice versa, do nothing. That is why some people, having received a refusal of an offer for the first time, try not to make it again the next time. We are always guided by our thoughts, we are influenced by our own images. What to do for a person who has had many negative contacts throughout his life, and under their influence a certain worldview has been formed. It prevents you from moving on and conquering new heights. There is an exit. It's called cognitive behavioral psychotherapy.

This method is one of modern trends in therapy mental illness. The treatment is based on the study of the origin of human complexes and their psychological problems. American psychiatrist Aaron Beck is considered the creator of this method of therapy. Currently, Beck's cognitive psychotherapy is one of the effective ways treatment of depression, tendency to suicide attempts. Psychotherapy uses the principle of changing the patient's behavior and identifying thoughts that cause illness.

Goal of therapy

The main goals of cognitive therapy are:

1. Elimination of symptoms of the disease.
2. Reduced frequency of relapses after treatment.
3. Increases the efficiency of drug use.
4. Solution of many social problems patient.
5. Elimination of reasons that may cause this state, changing human behavior, adapting it to various life situations.

Basic principles of cognitive behavioral psychotherapy

This technique allows you to eliminate negative thoughts, create new ways of thinking and analyze the real problem. Psychoanalysis includes:

• The emergence of new stereotypes of thinking.
• Exploring unwanted or desired thoughts and what causes them.
• Visualizing that a new behavior can lead to emotional well-being.
• How to apply new conclusions in your life, new situations.

The main idea of ​​cognitive psychotherapy is that all the patient's problems come from his thinking. A person himself forms his own attitude to everything that happens. Thus, he has the corresponding feelings - fear, joy, anger, excitement. A person who inadequately evaluates the things, people and events around him can endow them with qualities that are not inherent to them.

Doctor's help

First of all, a psychiatrist, when treating such patients, tries to identify how they think, which leads to neurosis and suffering. And how to try to replace these categories of feelings with positive ones. People are again learning new methods of thinking that will lead to a more adequate assessment of any life situation. But the main condition for treatment is the patient’s desire to be cured. If a person is not aware of his disease and experiences some resistance, then treatment may be ineffective. Trying to change negative thoughts and stimulating change is quite difficult, because a person does not want to change his behavior and thinking. Many people don’t understand why they should change something in their life if they are already doing well. Conducting cognitive behavioral psychotherapy on your own will not be effective. Treatment, diagnosis and assessment of the degree of violations should be carried out by a specialist.

Types of therapy

Like other treatments, cognitive psychotherapy has a variety of techniques. Here are some of the most popular ones:

• Treatment using modeling method. Man presents possible development situations as a consequence of his behavior. An analysis of his actions and how to deal with this is carried out. Apply various techniques relaxation, which will allow you to get rid of anxiety and remove possible provoking factors leading to stress. The method has proven itself well in the treatment of self-doubt and various fears.
• Cognitive therapy. It is based on the acceptance that when the patient is emotionally disturbed, he obviously has thoughts of failure. A person immediately thinks that he will not succeed, while self-esteem is low, the slightest hint of failure is perceived as the end of the world. During treatment, the reason for the appearance of such thoughts is studied. Are set various situations to get positive life experience. The more successful events in life, the more self-confident the patient is, the faster he creates a positive opinion about himself. Over time, a person turns from a loser into a successful and self-confident person.
• Anxiety control training. The doctor teaches the patient to use anxiety as a relaxant. During the session, the psychiatrist works through possible situations to prepare the patient for frequently occurring events. This technique is used for those people who stressful situations cannot control themselves and cannot make a decision quickly.
• Fighting stress. As a result of using this technique against stress, the patient learns relaxation with the help of a psychotherapist. A person gets stressed on purpose. This helps you gain experience using relaxation techniques, which may be useful in the future.
• Rational-emotive therapy. There are people who consider themselves the best. These thoughts often lead to a discrepancy between real life and dreams. What can lead to constant stress, the discrepancy between dreams and reality is perceived as a terrible event. The treatment lies in motivating a person to live a real, not a fictional life. Over time, the ability to accept right decisions will protect you from unnecessary stress, the patient will no longer be dependent on his dreams.

What the patient will receive as a result of treatment:

• The ability to identify negative thoughts.
• It is realistic to evaluate thoughts and change them to more constructive ones that do not cause anxiety and depression.
• Normalize and maintain your lifestyle, eliminate provoking factors for stress.
• Use the skills you've learned to combat anxiety.
• Overcome anxiety, do not hide problems from loved ones, consult with them and use their support.

Cognitive behavioral psychotherapy

Cognitive behavioral therapy is a type of treatment that helps patients become aware of the feelings and thoughts that influence their behavior. It is commonly used to treat a wide range of conditions, including addiction, phobias, anxiety and depression. Behavioral therapy, which is becoming very popular today, generally lasts a short time and is primarily aimed at helping people with a specific problem. In treatment, clients learn to change and identify disturbing or destructive thought patterns that affect their behavior Negative influence.

Origins

How did cognitive or What made adherents of popular psychoanalysis turn to the study of various models of human cognition and behavior?

Who founded the first official laboratory dedicated to psychological research at the University of Leipzig in 1879, is considered the founder of experimental psychology. But it is worth noting that what was considered then experimental psychology is very far from today’s experimental psychology. In addition, it is known that current psychotherapy owes its appearance to the works of Sigmund Freud, known throughout the world.

At the same time, few people know that applied and experimental psychology have found fertile ground for their development in the United States. In fact, after Sigmund Freud arrived here in 1911, psychoanalysis managed to surprise even prominent psychiatrists. So much so that within a few years about 95% of the country's psychiatrists were trained in how to work in psychoanalysis.

This monopoly in the United States on psychotherapy lasted until the 1970s, while it lingered in specialized circles of the Old World for another 10 years. It is worth noting that the crisis of psychoanalysis - in terms of its ability to respond to various changes the demands of society after the Second World War, as well as the ability to “cure” it, began in the 1950s. At this time, alternative ones were born. The main role played among them, of course, was cognitive behavioral therapy. At that time, few people dared to do exercises on their own.

Arose immediately in different parts light, thanks to the contribution of psychoanalysts who were dissatisfied with their tools of intervention and analysis, rational-emotive-behavioral therapy soon spread throughout Europe. She's for a short time has proven itself as a treatment method that can provide an effective solution various problems clients.

Since the publication of J. B. Watson's work on the subject of behaviorism and the application behavioral therapy, fifty years have passed, only after this time did it take its place among the working areas of psychotherapy. But its further evolution took place at an accelerated pace. This was simple reason: like other techniques that were based on scientific thought, cognitive behavioral therapy, the exercises of which are given in the article below, remained open to change, integrated and assimilated with other techniques.

It absorbed the results of research conducted in psychology, as well as in other scientific fields. This has led to new forms of intervention and analysis.

This 1st generation therapy, which was characterized by a radical shift from the psychodynamic therapy known, was quickly followed by a set of “innovations.” They already took into account previously forgotten cognitive aspects. This fusion of cognitive and behavioral therapy is next generation behavioral therapy, also known as cognitive behavioral therapy. It is still being taught today.

Its development is still ongoing, new treatment methods are emerging, which already belong to the 3rd generation of therapy.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: Basics

The basic concept suggests that our feelings and thoughts play a major role in shaping human behavior. Thus, a person who thinks too much about runway accidents, plane crashes and other air disasters may avoid traveling by various air transport. It is worth noting that the goal of this therapy is to teach patients that they cannot control every aspect of the world around them, but they can take full control of their own interpretation of this world, as well as interaction with it.

IN Lately Self-administered cognitive behavioral therapy is being used increasingly. This type Treatment generally does not take much time, due to which it is considered more accessible than other types of therapy. Its effectiveness has been empirically proven: experts have found that it enables patients to cope with inappropriate behavior in its various manifestations.

Types of therapy

The British Association of Cognitive and Behavioral Therapists say it is a range of treatments based on principles and concepts derived from patterns of human behavior and emotion. They include a huge range of approaches to getting rid of emotional disorders, as well as self-help options.

Specialists regularly use the following types:

• cognitive therapy;
• emotional-rational-behavioral therapy;
• multimodal therapy.

Behavioral therapy methods

They are used in cognitive learning. Main method is behavioral rational-emotive therapy. Initially, a person’s irrational thoughts are established, then the reasons for the irrational belief system are clarified, after which the goal is approached.

Usually, general methods training is ways to solve problems. The main method is biofeedback training, which is used mainly to get rid of the effects of stress. In this case, a hardware study takes place general condition muscle relaxation, as well as optically or acoustically feedback occurs. Muscle relaxation with feedback is positively reinforced, after which it leads to self-soothing.

Cognitive-behavioral therapy: methods of learning and assimilation

In behavioral therapy, the postulate of education is systematically used, according to which correct behavior can be taught and learned. Model learning belongs to the most important processes. Learning methods focus mainly on operant conditioning, after which people build their desired behavior. A very important method is imitation learning.

A model is systematically imitated in vicarious learning—a person or a symbol. In other words, inheritance can be induced by participation, symbolically or covertly.

Behavioral therapy is actively used when working with children. Exercises in this case contain reinforcing direct stimuli, for example, candy. In adults, this goal is served by a system of privileges and rewards. Prompting (support of the therapist setting an example) with success gradually decreases.

Unlearning methods

Odysseus in Homer's Odyssey, on the advice of Circe (the sorceress), orders himself to be tied to the mast of the ship in order not to be subjected to the singing of the seductive sirens. He covered the ears of his companions with wax. With overt avoidance, behavioral therapy reduces the impact, while some changes are made to increase the likelihood of success. For example, to negative behavior, alcohol abuse, an aversive stimulus is added, for example, a smell that causes vomiting.

Cognitive behavioral therapy exercises come in a wide variety. Thus, with the help of a device designed for the treatment of enuresis, it is possible to get rid of bedwetting - the mechanism for awakening the patient is immediately triggered when the first drops of urine appear.

Elimination methods

Elimination methods should combat inappropriate behavior. It is worth noting that one of the main methods is systematic desensitization to decompose the fear reaction using 3 steps: deep muscle relaxation training, drawing up full list fears, as well as alternating irritation and relaxation of fears from the list in increasing order.

Methods of confrontation

These methods use accelerated contacts with initial fear stimuli regarding peripheral or central phobias for various mental disorders. The main method is flooding (assault with various stimuli using firm techniques). The client is subjected to direct or intense mental influence all kinds of fear stimuli.

Components of therapy

Often people experience feelings or thoughts that only strengthen them in an incorrect opinion. These beliefs and opinions lead to problematic behaviors that can impact all areas of life, including romantic relationships, family, school, and work. For example, a person who suffers from low self-esteem may have negative thoughts about himself, his abilities or appearance. Because of this, the person will begin to avoid social situations or give up career opportunities.

Behavioral therapy is used to correct this. To combat such destructive thoughts and negative behaviors, the therapist begins by helping the client establish problematic beliefs. This stage, also known as functional analysis, is important for understanding how situations, feelings and thoughts can contribute to the emergence of inappropriate behavior. This process may be challenging, particularly for clients struggling with over-introspection, although it may result in the insights and self-knowledge that are considered an essential part of the healing process.

Cognitive behavioral therapy includes the second part. It focuses on the actual behavior that is contributing to the problem. The person begins to practice and learn new skills, which can then be applied in real-life situations. Thus, a person who suffers from drug addiction is able to learn skills to overcome this craving and can avoid social situations that could potentially cause relapse, as well as cope with all of them.

CBT in most cases is a smooth process that helps a person take new steps towards changing their behavior. Thus, a social phobia may begin by simply imagining himself in a certain social situation that causes him anxiety. Then he can try to talk with friends, acquaintances and family members. The process of regularly moving towards a goal does not seem so difficult, while the goals themselves are absolutely achievable.

Using CBT

This therapy is used to treat people who suffer from a wide range of diseases - phobias, anxiety, addiction and depression. CBT is considered one of the most studied types of therapy, in part because the treatment focuses on specific problems and its results are relatively easy to measure.

This therapy is best suited for clients who are particularly introspective. For CBT to be truly effective, a person must be ready for it, he must be willing to spend time and effort analyzing his own feelings and thoughts. This kind of self-analysis can be difficult, but it is an excellent way to learn much more about the influence of internal states on behavior.

Cognitive behavioral therapy is also great for people who need quick treatment, which does not involve the use of certain medications. Thus, one of the benefits of cognitive behavioral therapy is that it helps clients develop skills that can be useful today and later.

Developing self-confidence

It’s worth mentioning right away that self-confidence comes from various qualities: the ability to express needs, feelings and thoughts, in addition, to perceive the needs and feelings of other people, the ability to say “no”; in addition, the ability to start, end and continue conversations, while speaking freely in front of the public, etc.

This training is aimed at overcoming possible social fears, as well as difficulties during contacts. Similar influences are also used for hyperactivity and aggressiveness, for activating clients who have been receiving treatment from psychiatrists for a long time, and for mental retardation.

This training primarily pursues two goals: the formation of social skills and the elimination of social phobias. In this case, many techniques are used, for example, behavioral exercises and role-playing games, training in daily situations, operant techniques, model training, group therapy, video techniques, methods of self-control, etc. This means that in this training, in most cases, we are talking about a program using all kinds of methods in some sequence.

Behavioral therapy is also used for children. Special forms of this training were created for children with communication difficulties and social phobias. Peterman and Peterman proposed a compact therapeutic program that, along with group and individual training, also includes counseling for the parents of these children.

Criticism of CBT

Some patients at the beginning of treatment report that, regardless of the fairly simple awareness of the irrationality of some thoughts, just this awareness does not make the process of getting rid of it easy. It should be noted that behavioral therapy involves identifying these thinking patterns, and it is also aimed at helping to get rid of these thoughts using huge amount strategies. These may include role-playing, journaling, distraction and relaxation techniques.

Now let's look at some exercises that you can do yourself at home.

Muscle progressive relaxation according to Jacobson

The lesson is conducted while sitting. You need to lean your head against the wall and put your hands on the armrests. First, you should create tension in all your muscles sequentially, and this should happen while inhaling. We instill in ourselves a feeling of warmth. In this case, relaxation is accompanied by a very fast and fairly sharp exhalation. The time for muscle tension is about 5 seconds, relaxation is about 30 seconds. In this case, each exercise must be done 2 times. This method is great for children too.

1. Arm muscles. Stretch your arms forward, place them in different sides fingers. You need to try to reach the wall with your fingers.
2. Brushes. Clench your fists as tightly as possible. Imagine that you are squeezing water out of a squeezable icicle.
3. Shoulders. Try to reach your earlobes with your shoulders.
4. Feet. Use your toes to reach the middle of your shin.
5. Stomach. Make your stomach look like stone, as if you are repelling a blow.
6. Hips, legs. The toes are fixed and the heels are raised.
7. Middle 1/3 of the face. Wrinkle your nose, squint your eyes.
8. Upper 1/3 of the face. Wrinkle forehead, surprised face.
9. Lower 1/3 of the face. Fold your lips into a “proboscis” shape.
10. Lower 1/3 of the face. Move the corners of your mouth to your ears.

Self-instructions

We all tell ourselves something. We give ourselves instructions, orders, information for a specific solution to problems or instructions. In this case, the person may begin with verbalizations, which over time will become part of the entire behavioral repertoire. People are taught such direct instructions. Moreover, in a number of cases they become “counter-instructions” for aggression, fear, and others. In this case, self-instructions with approximate formulas are used according to the steps given below.

1. Preparing for a stressor.

• “It's easy to do. Remember the humor."
• “I can create a plan to deal with this.”

2. Responding to provocations.

• “As long as I remain calm, I am in complete control of the whole situation.”
• “Worrying won’t help me in this situation. I am absolutely confident in myself."

3. Reflection of experience.

• If the conflict is unresolvable: “Forget about the difficulties. To think about them is only to destroy yourself.”
• If the conflict is resolved or the situation was managed: “It wasn’t as scary as I expected.”

Last update: 07/17/2014

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a type of treatment that helps patients understand the thoughts and feelings that influence behavior. It is commonly used to treat wide range diseases, including phobias, addictions, depression and anxiety. Cognitive behavioral therapy usually lasts a short time and focuses on helping clients with a specific problem. During treatment, people learn to identify and change destructive or anxious thinking patterns that have a negative impact on behavior.

Basics of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

The basic concept implies that our thoughts and feelings play a fundamental role in shaping our behavior. For example, a person who thinks too much about plane crashes, runway accidents, and other air disasters may begin to avoid air travel. The goal of cognitive behavioral therapy is to teach patients that they cannot control every aspect of the world around them, but they can take control of how they interpret and interact with the world.
IN last years Cognitive behavioral therapy is becoming increasingly popular among both clients and therapists themselves. Because this type of treatment, as a rule, does not take much time, due to which it is considered more accessible than other types of therapy. Its effectiveness has been empirically proven: experts have found that it helps patients overcome inappropriate behavior in its most varied manifestations.

Types of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

As noted by the British Association of Behavioral and Cognitive Therapists, “cognitive behavioral psychotherapy is a range of treatments based on concepts and principles formulated based on psychological models human emotions and behavior. They include both a wide range of approaches to treating emotional disorders and self-help options.”
The following are regularly used by professionals:

• Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy;
• cognitive therapy;
• multimodal therapy.

Components of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

People often experience thoughts or feelings that only reinforce their wrong opinion. These opinions and beliefs can lead to problematic behavior that can impact multiple areas of life, including family, romantic relationships, work and school. For example, a person suffering from low self-esteem may have negative thoughts about himself or his own abilities or appearance. As a result, the person may begin to avoid situations social interaction or refuse, for example, opportunities for advancement at work.
To combat these destructive thoughts and behaviors, the therapist begins by helping the client identify the problematic beliefs. This stage, also known as functional analysis, has important to understand how thoughts, feelings and situations can contribute to inappropriate behavior. This process can be challenging, especially for patients who struggle with over-introspective tendencies, but ultimately it can lead to self-knowledge and insights that are an integral part of the healing process.
The second part of cognitive behavioral therapy focuses on the actual behavior that is contributing to the problem. The client begins to learn and practice new skills that can then be used in real-life situations. For example, a person suffering from drug addiction can learn coping skills and ways to avoid or cope with social situations that could potentially trigger relapse.
In most cases, CBT is gradual process, which helps a person take additional steps towards behavior change. A person suffering from social phobia may begin by simply imagining themselves in a social situation, worrying. He can then try talking to friends, family members and acquaintances. With constant movement towards the goal, the process seems less complicated, and the goals themselves seem quite achievable.

Application of CBT

I use cognitive behavioral therapy to treat people suffering from a wide range of illnesses - anxiety, phobias, depression and addiction. CBT is one of the most studied types of therapy - in part because the treatment focuses on specific problems and its results are relatively easy to measure.
Cognitive behavioral therapy is often best suited for clients who tend to be self-reflective. For CBT to be effective, a person must be ready for it and must be willing to spend time and effort analyzing their thoughts and feelings. This kind of introspection can be difficult, but it is a great way to learn more about how your internal state influences your behavior.
Cognitive behavioral therapy is also good for those who need short-term treatment that does not involve the use of medication. One of the benefits of cognitive behavioral therapy is that it helps clients develop skills that can be useful now and in the future.

Cognitive-behavioral therapy(eng. Cognitive behavioral therapy) - psychotherapy, the essence of which is that the cause of psychological, personality, anxiety disorders (depression, phobias, fears, anxiety, stress disorders, psychopathization, etc.) is nothing more than internal, often unconscious, dysfunctional beliefs and attitudes of a person. (see mental health treatment)

Principles of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

These basic principles of cognitive therapy apply in every therapeutic setting. However, the course of treatment can vary greatly according to each client's needs, the nature of his problems, his goals, his ability and willingness to form a strong therapeutic alliance with the therapist, as well as his previous experience with psychotherapy and his treatment preferences.

Acceptance in cognitive behavioral therapy depends primarily on the characteristics of the client’s mental and emotional disorders.

Principles of cognitive, behavioral psychotherapy:

1) Cognitive therapy is based on a constantly evolving formulation of the therapeutic case in its own terms.

2) Cognitive behavioral therapy requires the creation of a strong therapeutic alliance.

3) Collaboration and active participation are emphasized.

4) It is goal oriented and problem focused.

5) The focus here is on the present, especially at the beginning of psychotherapy.

6) It is an educational therapy whose purpose is to teach a person to be his or her own therapist. In cognitive therapy Special attention focuses on relapse prevention.

7) Cognitive therapy is time limited. Most people suffering from depression and anxiety disorder, you can help in 4-14 sessions.

8.) During psychotherapy, sessions are structured. Regardless of the diagnosis and stage of treatment, the cognitive therapist strives to strictly adhere to a specific plan at each session.

9) This therapy teaches people to recognize and evaluate their dysfunctional attitudes and beliefs and find adaptive responses to them.

10) Cognitive therapy techniques are aimed at changing a person’s thinking, mood and behavior.

Although the cognitive therapist's primary toolkit is cognitive strategies such as Socratic dialogue or guided inquiry, techniques borrowed from other areas of psychotherapy (especially behavior therapy, Gestalt therapy, transactional analysis, and psychoanalytic therapy) are also widely used.

In choosing techniques for each case, the psychotherapist proceeds from the nature of the problem and his own goals in relation to specific psychotherapeutic sessions.

Cognitive, behavioral psychotherapy - main goals

2) reducing the likelihood of relapse after completion of psychotherapy;

3) increasing the effectiveness of pharmacotherapy;

4) solving psychosocial problems (which can either be a consequence of a mental, emotional disorder, or precede its occurrence);

5) eliminating the causes contributing to the development of psychopathology: changing maladaptive beliefs and attitudes of a person, correcting cognitive errors, changing dysfunctional behavior.

Cognitive behavioral therapy - The tasks of the psychotherapist to help the client:

1) realize the influence of thoughts on emotions and behavior;

2) learn to identify and observe negative automatic thoughts;

3) explore negative automatic thoughts and arguments that support and refute them (“for” and “against”);

4) replace erroneous cognitions with more rational thoughts;

5) discover and change maladaptive beliefs that form fertile ground for the occurrence of cognitive errors.

Cognitive behavioral psychotherapy with the inclusion of other techniques will help get rid of any psychological, personal and emotional problems