About CBT

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is a group of flexible and individualized psychological interventions, based on research evidence. They are both time efficient and oriented towards reaching objectives. At the international level, CBT is considered the gold standard in the psychotherapy field. A typical CBT session follows a general structure, in which personalized objectives are established based on the collaborative relationship between therapist and patient.

Psychotherapy implies alternating between 2 main approaches:

1. self-knowledge, personal analysis and growing insight (insight-focused);
2. the acceptance-change paradigm + optimization and precention (symptom & skill-focused).

The first approach implies exploring personality traits and recurrent patters in relationships (including „here and now”, in the therapeutic one), along with tying them to past experiences. Let’s imagine that each of us writes an autobiography; because many chapters of our life could be defined by a recurring theme - for some of us, it would be abandonment; for others, self-sacrifice and being exploited by others. Many times, we are not conscious of these patterns and psychotherapy reflection helps us identify and work with them.

The approach implies also addressing and expressing uncomfortable emotions, like envy, shame and fury. The idea is to be more in contact with our needs, experiences and our past, to better understand how we function and what drives us now.

The second approach is summed up in the following quote: „Lord, give me the openness to accept things that I cannot change [vs. resentment and bitterness], the courage to change things that I can change [vs. fear and giving up] and the wisdom to tell them apart.”

We will explore together the mechanisms that are involved, meaning pre-existing factors, triggers and ways of maintaining current problems, following up with discussions on how to improve quality of life, relationship satisfaction and efficient functioning on a daily basis.

To this end, we will discuss a series of skills, meaning learned behaviors that grow our grade of adaptation to our daily life. Among those we can count:

• Emotional adjustment (e.g., stress management, growing positive emotions);
• Social competencies (e.g., assertive communication, negotiation, setting limits in relationships);
• Executive functions (e.g., planning and organizing, self-control, time management).

We will develop together these skills by applying cognitive behavioral principles, focusing on our thinking style (e.g., analyzing and adjusting the thoughts that are not helping us) and on specific behaviors (e.g., improving the frequency of healthy habits). The objective is for each one of us to become our own personal therapist.

It is important to practice between sessions – during the sessions, we nurture our skills, so that we can apply them in our daily life in the places where we are dealing with practical and emotional challenges. It is like practicing driving in the simulator, without taking the car to the street yet.

To put things in context – assuming we sleep aproximately 8h/night, 1h of weekly therapy means even less than 1% from our waking hours during the course of a week. It is essential to practice especially between sessions. That is why it is important to establish consensually individual action plans from each session to the other.

Moreover, it takes time. For example, in the case of a depressive episode, the intervention guides recommend between 12 and 16 sessions. Depending on the complexity and the number of objectives, the duration can vary realistically between 3 and 12 months (i.e., 12-50 sessions).

Just like no one develops muscles after just one month of going to the gym, in the same way no one can change only in a few weeks their mental habits and behaviors developed in the course of years. Therapy progress will not be liniar and miraculous results will not appear in a short time.

You can connect with Victor in the I’m Fine platform for choosing an online therapist.

To explore:

• Psych: Therapy
• 111 Loaded Questions That Reveal Someone’s Biggest Insecurities, Vulnerabilities And Emotional Baggage