Generality
Cognitive behavioral psychotherapy is a treatment designed to address psychopathological disorders, such as anxiety, panic attacks and phobias.
This type of intervention is based on the assumption that there is a close relationship between thoughts, emotions and behavior . In fact, for cognitive behavioral psychotherapy, emotional problems are influenced by the actions and experiences of life.
The treatment plan is initiated by a psychotherapist and aims to provide the patient with the tools to know how to manage anxiety and change negative beliefs and wrong perceptions of the mind. What characterizes and distinguishes this approach is, in fact, the explanation of the pathology through the analysis of the structures and the cognitive constructions of the individual that contribute to maintaining the anxiety symptoms.
What's this
What is Cognitive Behavioral Psychotherapy?
Cognitive behavioral psychotherapy is a method that allows you to work on the psychology of the person and, at the same time, teaches you to test yourself in situations that cause anxiety, phobia or panic attacks.
In practice, the treatment combines the cognitive component (ie focuses on mental processes) to the behavioral one.
Cognitive behavioral psychotherapy makes use of procedures aimed at modifying not only manifest behaviors, but also emotions, attitudes, expectations and beliefs of the subject.
Cognitive Behavioral Psychotherapy: basic principles
Cognitive behavioral psychotherapy (in English: " Cognitive-Behavior Therapy ", CBT) is based on the concept that behavioral and emotional responses are strongly influenced by ideas, thoughts, beliefs and beliefs related to the events of life.
Cognitive distortions are maintained over time and hinder the patient's ability to deal with his own psychopathological disorders, despite the malaise experienced and the opportunities to intervene on the reasons for their origin.
In very simple terms, cognitive behavioral psychotherapy aims to promote, in those cases where it is possible, the recovery of common sense .
Characteristics of Cognitive Behavioral Psychotherapy
Cognitive behavioral psychotherapy is:
- Tested and validated: cognitive behavioral psychotherapy is a scientifically based method, based on the knowledge of mental structures and processes received from basic psychological research . Currently, this strategy is considered, at international level, one of the most effective methods for understanding and treating psychopathological disorders. The effectiveness of this approach has been demonstrated by scientific studies carried out under controlled conditions, conducted with the same rigor as the tests carried out for drug therapies.
- Structured and concrete : cognitive behavioral psychotherapy is structured according to a well-defined structure, although not in a rigid way (depending on the disorder, the cognitive component or, vice versa, the behavioral one may be prevalent). The goal of treatment is to solve concrete psychological disorders, trying to reduce, for example, depressive symptoms or eliminate compulsive rituals.
- Short term : the duration of cognitive behavioral psychotherapy usually varies from four to twelve months, depending on the case; more often than not, the meetings are set weekly. However, significant changes occur already in the first months of treatment.
What is it for?
What is Cognitive Behavioral Psychotherapy for?
Cognitive behavioral psychotherapy allows one to gradually face a series of anxiety-provoking circumstances, starting from the less demanding to the more complex ones. Little by little, the patient re-learns to manage situations that were previously avoided and / or evoked negative thoughts.
The goal of cognitive behavioral psychotherapy is not simply to eliminate anxiety, but to know how to manage it in a concrete way, modifying dysfunctional emotions, behaviors and thoughts.
The treatment aims, therefore, to improve the quality of life of patients and help them manage or resolve any psychopathology. Cognitive behavioral psychotherapy provides the tools to identify distorted patterns of reasoning and interpretation of reality, thus integrating them with functional and positive thoughts and beliefs.
Cognitive Behavioral Psychotherapy: when is it indicated?
Cognitive behavioral psychotherapy is indicated in the presence of various psychological, emotional and behavioral disorders.
This approach is particularly effective in the treatment of:
- Anxiety;
- Panic attacks;
- Phobias;
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder;
- Post-traumatic stress (emotional and physical / sexual trauma);
- Depression.
Combined with the appropriate administration of drugs or other types of intervention, cognitive behavioral psychotherapy is also useful in dealing with:
- Eating disorders (anorexia, bulimia, psychogenic obesity);
- Sleep disorders;
- Dependence on alcohol, drugs, sexual and internet;
- Personality disorders;
- Bipolar disorder;
- Schizophrenia.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Higher Institute of Health (ISS), cognitive behavioral psychotherapy has assumed the role of the treatment of choice for anxiety disorders.
How it happens
Behavioral Psychotherapy: how does it work?
Cognitive behavioral psychotherapy is a treatment that involves progressively weakening the links between anxiety-inducing stimuli and the perception of anxiety . During this journey, the patient can experience the most disparate emotions: fear, sadness, agitation, worry, anger, panic, etc.
In these circumstances, the cognitive component of psychotherapy:
- Teaches how to adopt relaxation techniques, to calm the body and the mind;
- It trains you to recognize recurrent thoughts and distorted attitudes that cause discomfort, negative feelings and wrong behaviors, replacing them with realistic thoughts or more functional ones for your well-being.
The behavioral component trains, instead, to implement these teachings to block the symptoms. This aspect of psychotherapy helps to modify the relationship between the persistent problematic emotions experienced by the patient and the habitual behavioral reactions that the person puts in place in such circumstances, through:
- Learning new ways to respond;
- Gradual exposure to feared situations;
- Active management of hardship states.
These two methods - cognitive and behavioral - act in synergy and in various combinations, that is, based on the disorder to be treated, one component can be predominant over the other. For example, phobias have greater benefit than exposure to the frightening circumstance (behavioral therapy), while panic attacks can be cured especially when you understand what they are triggered by (cognitive therapy).
Cognitive Behavioral Psychotherapy: which phases do you foresee?
The path of cognitive behavioral psychotherapy is divided into the following phases:
- Initial assessment : the psychotherapist collects information on what causes discomfort, for example, if situations occur outdoors or indoors, what are the triggering stimuli or anxiety-provoking circumstances and so on. Through this anamnestic interview, sometimes supported by psycho-diagnostic tests, the therapist is able to correctly frame the subjective representation of reality at the origin and in the maintenance of the patient's psychopathological disorders, and how to intervene in the most appropriate way with cognitive behavioral psychotherapy.
- Psycho-education : the psychotherapist explains to the patient the various disorders and situations capable of inducing anxiety and panic, explaining that these are harmless facts. This phase of cognitive behavioral psychotherapy is very important, as the subject experiences the psychological problem with a serious illness. For example, the acceleration of heart rate and breathlessness can be interpreted as signs of a heart disease. In the course of cognitive behavioral psychotherapy, the patient can be offered materials to read and reread, such as pamphlets and books, to deepen his own problems and become more and more calm.
- Cognitive restructuring : this phase involves a dialogue between psychotherapist and patient to try to understand the causes of anxiety, distorted thoughts and interpretations that are associated with malaise. The discussions aim to investigate the circumstances in which the first attack took place and the last or how anxiety appeared through a series of questions. This interaction is important to recognize which thoughts can trigger panic attacks are distorted and have nothing real. The patient must monitor negative thoughts, beliefs and perceptions to become aware of and understand that they are not anything important. Cognitive restructuring also includes de- structuring, ie situations are proposed, trying to understand what could happen if the worst fears came true and if these would be as disastrous as is believed.
- Exposure : the last step in cognitive behavioral psychotherapy requires the patient to expose himself to circumstances capable of triggering the feared symptoms, such as dizziness, palpitations and a sense of suffocation. These situations can be recreated by various methods, such as physical exertion or breathing.
The path of cognitive behavioral psychotherapy can be considered concluded when the person arrives to face with tranquility also the situation that triggers the most anxiety or panic (eg speaking in front of an audience, driving the car, being in the midst of strangers or in a closed place etc.).
Cognitive behavioral psychotherapy makes use of relaxation and breathing exercises, to be implemented whenever the need arises.
Results
Cognitive behavioral psychotherapy involves a constant commitment on the part of the patient. In addition to the appointments in the psychotherapist's office, the person must perform, in the course of his daily life, some small tasks that test and allow him to practice on the lessons learned.
Cognitive behavioral psychotherapy makes it possible to obtain significant benefits after just a few sessions. The satisfaction experienced in situations that were previously anxious, therefore avoid, reassures the patient and, at the same time, feeds the motivation to continue the treatment.
In the case of more serious psychological problems, cognitive behavioral psychotherapy can be integrated with the use of psychotropic drugs and other forms of treatment.
Cognitive behavioral psychotherapy must be systematic and repetitive. The patient should not be in a hurry to get results, otherwise he risks evoking the opposite feeling, that is, causing anxiety in pursuing the goal. Cognitive behavioral therapy should be approached as a scale: gradually, one becomes aware of one's psychopathology, then one tackles the problem in real life with the goal of achieving healing.
How long does Cognitive Behavioral Psychotherapy last?
The duration of cognitive behavioral psychotherapy is closely related to the severity of the treated disorder. In general, the treatment takes place over a period of four to twelve months, but to get the first benefits, it takes about 6-8 meetings.
The therapeutic plan is agreed with the psychotherapist during the initial evaluation; usually, the meetings are organized on a weekly basis until the problem is reduced and, at the end of the therapy, appointments can be made for follow-up, to check periodically if the results are maintained by the patient.
