Cognitive Behavioral therapy (CBT) is one of the most widely recognized and heavily researched treatment interventions used for an array of different mental health disorders and symptoms. CBT has a long following and has demonstrated effective outcomes for people with depression, anxiety, insomnia, trauma, eating disorders among other diagnoses. CBT is my primary therapeutic and theoretic orientation to which I help my clients achieve a balance between the mind, behaviors, and emotions.
CBT focuses on cognitive schemas (thoughts) and how your thoughts may be impacting the way you live your life. For example, if a person thinks "I am not a good person", their behaviors (e.g., isolating from others) and their emotions (e.g., sadness) will likely cause them to lead a very different life then if they are able to shift their thinking. With a client like this, they are likely pulling from limited examples or experiences to validate this one core belief. However it is very likely that this very same person has done many acts of kindness and engaged in a positive way in the community - yet they cannot see this clearly as they are focused on their negative, maladaptive thoughts. As a CBT therapist it is my goal to assist my clients in reframing their thought process to help them achieve a more balanced, objective picture of their lives and work on decreasing feelings and symptoms of depression and anxiety.
CBT demonstrates a strong connection with our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors and it is within our control and power to work on regulating (balancing) each of these parts. It is not an overnight process but in my experience I've witnessed that over time the more balanced a person is the more likely they will have an effective and positive way of coping with situations. In my opinion, the best part of this process is that it is collaborative, meaning that you and I work together to gain insight into what is most helpful for you in your life.
Lastly, while I do utilize various interventions stemming from CBT, I am also trained and utilize materials from Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, Internal Family Systems (IFS), Mindfulness for stress/anxiety reduction, Trauma-Focused therapies, Positive Psychology for strength-based and performance approaches along with other evidenced-based protocols.