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Counseling with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
What Can it Do to Help?
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Counseling that uses a Cognitive Behavioral approach is not based in an empathetic listening to your problems. It is dynamic and often directive in its format.
This does not mean that a counselor who uses a cognitive behavioral approach is cold and unfeeling. There is a high level of concern and empathy for what you are going through. |
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The focus though, is directed at the thoughts and belief patterns that are shaping and influencing your behavior. These are at the core of what you view as a problem.
Cogntive Behavioral Therapy tries to help you improve your situation and reduce any distress. It does so by helping you correct any irrational thoughts or premises. |
From the moment you awake, events are happening and you are making evaluations and choices to act. Most of the choices and decisions are outside of your focused awareness; you make them nonetheless. Your senses are operating and providing input constantly. In 10 seconds of time your brain can be flooded with thousands of inputs from your sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch. If you had focused awareness of each and every input it could be a very confusing expereince! Your brain filters most of the inputs to allow for concious experience to exist. In additon to sense input, your brain/mind uses the sum total of your "learned expereince" to make evaluations and choose actions. This also includes any emotions that where a part of these past expereinces.
Crucial to the cognitive behavioral process is that while your mind (brain) does most of this work outside of your focused awarness and automatically; you can "take back" control of your thoughts.
For instance,
Are you aware of the pressure on your bottom against your seat?
You probably weren't until you read the question. To answer, you chose to focus on that sensory input - one that normally is filtered.
Let me ask, what are the thoughts and beliefs you hold about yourself? Now rate your Self Esteem. If you rate it a bit low, might those thoughts and beliefs be contributing?
Through counseling that uses a cognitive behavioral approach, you learn how to focus on, and modify what you think when events happen; and, thereby, change or eliminate behaviors you don't want. This can also result in changed emotional responses.
The changed responses, or reaction to the behavior of others, can result in improved communications, a better mood, a decrease in anxiety, effective response to stressful events and control of anger.
As you visit the various sections of My Counseling Site, you will see how cognitive behavioral theory is applied. For additional information about the underlying research, history and depth of cognitive behavioral therapy you can visit the National Association of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapists.
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