CBT – Cognitive Behaviour Therapy

What is Cognitive Behaviour Therapy and how can it help me?

Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) is a clinically proven treatment approach for a range of mental and emotional health issues, including anxiety, depression, OCD and eating disorders.

CBT helps you identify and challenge unhelpful thoughts whilst learning practical self-help strategies. These strategies are designed to bring about immediate positive changes in your quality of life.

CBT can be helpful for you when you need support to challenge unhelpful thoughts that are preventing you from reaching your goals or living the live you want to live.

CBT teaches you to think in a more positive way. It is based on the understanding that thinking negatively is a habit that, like any habit, can be broken.

Does this sound like you?

What psychological problems can CBT help with?

  • Anxiety
  • Anxiety disorders such as social phobia, obsessive-compulsive disorder or post-traumatic stress disorder.
  • Depression
  • Low self-esteem
  • Irrational fears
  • Hypochondria
  • Substance misuse – smoking, drinking or other drug use
  • Problem gambling
  • Eating disorders
  • Insomnia
  • Marriage or relationship problems
  • Certain emotional or behavioural problems in children or teenagers

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Using CBT to treat anxiety

Everyone feels anxious at times. Anxiety is a form of protection that can increase your performance in stressful situations. This could be the rush of anxiety before a big race or an interview which can enhance performance.

For you this may be a feeling of general anxiety. This means you often feel alert or fearful no matter what you are doing. This can be extremely debilitating and distressing, preventing you enjoying your daily life.

CBT can help you. It focuses on changing patterns of thinking and beliefs that are associated with, and trigger, anxiety.

Using CBT to treat depression

If you suffer with depression you can have ongoing negatie feeling about yourself, other people or the world around you. This negative thinking pattern becomes automatic, so you do not notice when your judgement is irrational or unfair on yourself.

CBT can help you by giving you tools to challenge the negative thoughts and override them with more realistic and positive thought processes.

What to expect from a CBT session

Assessment – this may include filling out questionnaires to help you describe your particular problem and pinpoint distressing symptoms. Discussing with your therapist what you wish to achieve.

  • Personal education – your therapist provides written materials to help you learn more about your particular problem. Knowledge is power. A good understanding of your particular psychological problem will help you to dismiss unfounded fears, which will help ease your negative feelings.
  • Goal Setting – your therapist helps you make a list of goals you wish to achieve from therapy (e.g. you may wish to overcome your shyness in social situations). You with your therapist work out practical strategies to help fulfil these goals
  • Practise of strategies – you practise your new strategies with the therapist.
  • Homework – this may be a number of things, but it’s really beneficial for consistency to enhance your management strategies.