Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

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What is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)?

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a structured, goal-oriented form of psychotherapy that addresses the ways that a person’s thoughts, feelings, and actions can affect each other. CBT has proved to be a valuable element of care for people who have been struggling with a wide range of mental and behavioral health concerns, including substance use disorders (addictions).

According to a June 2021 article in the journal Clinical Psychology in Europe, CBT is “the most widely practiced and heavily researched psychotherapy in the world.”

Types of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

The principles of CBT are evident in a host of other therapeutic approaches, including:

• Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), which focuses on improving patients’ capabilities in the areas of mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness
• Exposure therapy (ET), which is used to treat conditions such as specific phobia, other anxiety disorders, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• Cognitive behavioral family therapy (CBFT), which adapts key elements of CBT to address problems related to communication, conflicts, and other aspects of family dynamics 
• Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT), which is a version of CBT that incorporates practices such as mindful breathing, meditation, and full awareness of the present moment 
• Trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (TF-CBT), which is a modified type of CBT that is primarily used to help children, adolescents, and families who have been affected by trauma
• Motivational interviewing (MI), which helps patients use their own insights, priorities, and values as the basis for making meaningful changes in their life
• Rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT), which is one of the more influential precursors of CBT

How Does CBT Work?

CBT is based on the theory that emotional distress often results from maladaptive ways of thinking and viewing the world, such as:

• Problematic core beliefs – Often learned in early childhood, beliefs such as “I am worthless” or “the world is an inherently dangerous and unsafe place” can predispose people to consistently expect, and even unconsciously contribute to, negative outcomes.
• Automatic negative thoughts – These can be viewed as problematic core beliefs in action. Examples can include assuming you will fail before you even begin, or believing that the challenge you are facing will be much more difficult than it actually is.
• Cognitive distortions – This area refers to unhelpful ways of perceiving events. They can include overgeneralizing (viewing one setback as evidence that you are incapable of success) and minimizing the positive (dismissing successes as due to random chance instead of your inherent skills and talents). 

CBT can help you identify your own core beliefs, automatic thoughts, and cognitive distortions, and connect them with problems that you have experienced in your life. You can then begin to replace these unhelpful thought processes with healthier ways of thinking, which in turn can empower you to replace negative behavior patterns with more productive ways of acting.

Mental Health Programs That Provide CBT

CBT can be an integral part of mental and behavioral health programming at many levels, including:

• Detox programs
• Inpatient programs
• Partial hospitalization programs (PHPs)
• Intensive outpatient programs (IOPs)
• Outpatient programs (OPs)

What to Expect During CBT

CBT is a goal-oriented form of psychotherapy, which means that sessions will typically focus on a certain problem or area of concern. Thus, the content of a session can depend on the type of challenge that you’ve been facing.

Speaking from a more general perspective, common characteristics of cognitive behavioral therapy sessions in Arkansas and elsewhere include:

• Identifying problems that you have been struggling with and discussing how these concerns have affected your life and made you feel.
• Trying to view the problems from different perspectives, with the goal of identifying ways that your perceptions may have contributed to your difficulties
• Considering specific changes that you could make to alleviate your emotional distress and help you overcome the challenge.
• Evaluating the effectiveness of these changes, and either reinforcing or modifying your approach

As you’ve probably begun to realize, CBT is not a passive experience. This approach doesn’t simply involve stating your problems and being “treated” by following the advice of your therapist. 

Instead, you’ll be expected to work in partnership with the professional who conducts the session, which has the added benefit of empowering you to take ownership of both the problem and the solution.

How Effective Is CBT?

Multiple experts – including the authors of a January 2018 paper in the journal Frontiers in Psychiatry – have described CBT as the “gold standard” for psychotherapy. 

Among the reasons cited in that paper:

• No other form of psychotherapy has been as thoroughly researched as CBT.
• The principles of CBT align with “current mainstream paradigms of human mind and behavior (e.g., information processing).”
• Studies have consistently demonstrated that CBT yields superior results.
• In areas where CBT is systematically different than other modalities, these differences typically give the advantage to CBT.

Of course, even CBT advocates acknowledge that the approach is not perfect, nor will it help every person. However, when CBT is included as a component of a comprehensive, personalized treatment plan, research has shown that it has the potential to be highly effective. 

The History of CBT

Cognitive behavior therapy was developed by Aaron Beck, MD, in the 1960s and 1970s. Dr. Beck began to form the concept of CBT while working with patients who had depression. During his sessions with these patients, he noticed that many expressed subjective thoughts and observations that didn’t appear to align with their objective reality. 

Helping patients resolve their inaccurate perceptions, he discovered, led them to make positive behavior changes and experience improved satisfaction with their lives. He initially called his new approach “cognitive therapy,” later changing the title to CBT. 

Acceptance of cognitive behavior therapy grew considerably in the 1980s, following the publication of two studies that reported CBT could be more effective than medication at easing the symptoms of depression. Through the ensuing decades, CBT has also proved to be beneficial for patients who have a wide range of other mental and behavioral health concerns.

Why Time Wellness Detox?

Here are just a few of the many reasons why Time Wellness Detox may be the perfect place for you:

• Throughout your time at our center, you will be in a safe, closely supervised, and highly supportive environment.
• Your treatment will be guided by a customized plan that reflects your unique needs, goals, and expectations.
• Your treatment team will encourage you to ask questions, share your concerns, and otherwise play an active role in all aspects of your care.
• Depending on your specific needs, you may receive prescription medication to ease withdrawal symptoms or address co-occurring mental health concerns. 
• CBT and other therapeutic interventions can help you manage withdrawal symptoms, address co-occurring mental health concerns, and begin to build a framework for successful, long-term recovery.
• Your team will document your progress and identify areas of continued need. Before you transition out of detox, we’ll review this information with you and use it to recommend the most appropriate types of follow-on treatment.