Cognitive Behaviour Therapy

Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) is an evidence-based mental health treatment for anxiety, depression, substance dependence, interpersonal problems, phobias, difficulty with healthy eating, and many other psychological concerns. Ipswich CBT therapists (or cognitive behavioural therapists) can help you understand the relationship between unhelpful thoughts and unhealthy behaviours through techniques such as socratic questioning.

The 3 key points of CBT are automatic thoughts or Automatic Negative Thoughts (ANTs), cognitive distortions, and underlying core beliefs or rigid rules that impair your wellbeing.

An automatic thought can be described as our brain’s immediate cognitive response to a situation that we perceive as a current or potential source of distress. A cognitive distortion can be described as a thought process that does not match reality. An underlying core belief is a specific statement which we take as the only truth, leading us to disregard any evidence contrary to it.

The 3 C’s in CBT are Catch it, Check it, Change it. The 3 C’s can be used to manage unhelpful thoughts which a person might otherwise ruminate on or amplify. It involves recognising an automatic thought, deconstructing why it isn’t completely factual, and reframing it to be closer to reality.

The ABC model in CBT is Antecedents, Beliefs, Consequences. According to the ABC model, our behaviours and emotions (consequences) are based on how we think (beliefs) in reaction to events (antecedents). Beliefs can be further broken down through the CBT downward arrow technique, in which the automatic thought associated with the event is elaborated on until the underlying core belief is revealed.

The 5 areas in CBT are thoughts, behaviours/actions, emotions, physical sensations, and situations. It’s a model for understanding one’s reactions to situations, enabling the application of targeted interventions for less distressing reactions. By emphasising the interconnectedness of the 5 areas, the model takes a comprehensive and holistic approach to handling distress.