How CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) Works for Reducing Anxiety
What is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)?
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, is a widely-researched and highly effective form of treatment for anxiety. Many studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of CBT for anxiety disorders, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, social anxiety disorder, panic disorder, and specific phobias.
CBT addresses the negative thought and behavioral patterns that are a part of anxiety. The basic premise of CBT is that our thoughts affect the way that we feel. In other words, it’s not necessarily the external situation, but rather our perception of the situation, that causes us to feel a certain way.
Awareness is an important first step that I talk about with clients, because without awareness, we aren’t able to identify the irrational (and oftentimes automatic) thoughts that cause us to feel anxious.
“Thought Challenging”
After we are aware of our thoughts, we are then able to challenge those thoughts. The fancy term for this is “cognitive restructuring,” but I prefer “thought challenging.” Thought challenging is identifying our negative thoughts, then replacing those thoughts with more rational thoughts.
With anxiety, external events are often perceived in a distorted way. For those who experience anxiety, events tend to be interpreted as more personalized, dangerous, and negative than they actually are.
For instance, for someone with social anxiety, going to a social gathering can seem very scary. Thoughts such as “they don’t like me,” “everyone is looking at me,” “so-and-so thinks I’m stupid,” etc. cause feelings of anxiousness (no wonder! Those aren’t very fun thoughts to have when you’re trying to enjoy yourself).
For someone who does not experience social anxiety, these thoughts are easy to identify as irrational. However, for the socially anxious person, these thoughts are so automatic and feel so true, it’s hard to see that they’re irrational in the first place — which is why first having the awareness to identify these irrational thoughts is so important.
After building an awareness of our automatic thoughts, we can then evaluate those thoughts and challenge them. This is often done in session with a therapist trained in CBT. What this process looks like is challenging the “proof” of these thoughts. This can take some time, especially with thoughts that are strongly ingrained and automatic. But eventually, one is able to see that the thoughts are irrational, and can then replace the irrational thoughts with more accurate thoughts.
With practice, the new, more rational thoughts begin to naturally replace the old, irrational thoughts.
An Example of Thought Challenging
Let’s take the example of Liz (made up person), who experiences anxiety related to parenting. In session, we’re able to identify that Liz’s irrational thoughts are “I’m a terrible mother” and then subsequently she thinks “I’m going to ‘mess up’ my kids” (by the way – these common thinking errors are also known as ‘catastrophizing,’ which I’ll talk about more in future blog posts):
Here is a breakdown of how CBT addresses this:
Liz’s negative thought #1: “I’m a terrible mother”
More realistic thought: “Parenting is hard, and I’m not perfect, but I always strive to be the best parent I can be.”
Liz’s negative thought #2: “I’m going to mess up my kids.”
More realistic thought: “Children are resilient, and the good days far outnumber the tough days. I have a strong connection with my kids and I am raising them in an overall loving and healthy way.”
In these examples, Liz finds evidence for why her original thoughts were irrational. She does always strive to be the best parent she can be, and the good days really do outnumber the tough days. She does have a strong connection with her children, and they are resilient.
By identifying the irrational thoughts, challenging those thoughts, and replacing them with more rational, positive thoughts, Liz feels less anxious and is able to feel more calm and confident in her parenting (and feel better about herself!)
If you can identify with some of these thinking errors, don’t worry. You’re normal, and it doesn’t have to feel like this forever. Start by noticing the irrational thoughts and gently challenging them. And always remember to be gentle with yourself — changing our thoughts takes time and practice.
Sometimes in life, we need help along the way. If you’re looking for CBT in Alexandria, MN and would like to work toward reducing overall anxiety, feel free to contact me for a 20 minute phone consultation to see if I’m the right fit for you.
