What is cognitive behavioral therapy?
Cognitive behavioral therapy addiction treatment or CBT, is a psychotherapeutic approach (a.k.a. “talking therapy”) to substance addiction treatment and recovery as well as a number of other mental disorders. It is a systematic procedure that is goal-oriented and solves problems associated with the cognitions, dysfunctional behaviors, and emotions that are commonly what many addictions develop from. However, these disorders may develop as a result of becoming addicted to alcohol or drugs.
How does CBT work?
You will quickly discover that cognitive behavior therapy is primarily utilized to treat a variety of behavioral and emotional disorders including:
- addiction
- anxiety disorders and panic attacks
- depression
- other phobias
The simplest way to describe how cognitive behavioral therapy functions is that it helps the addicted individual to understand those personal feelings and thoughts that influence their behavior negatively or positively. It helps the individual to focus on a very specific problem and is generally short-term in duration. During the addiction treatment and recovery process, the individual learns how to identify (and then change) those destructive and/or disturbing thought patterns that negatively impact their behavior.
The basics of cognitive behavioral therapy
The underlying premise or principle that CBT is based on is that our personal feelings and thoughts play a basic, fundamental role in the way in which we behave either alone or out in society. As an example, consider the individual who spends a lot of time thinking about airplane disasters such as crashes or runway accidents and avoids any type of airline travel. The primary goal of CBT is that the individual can learn how to take control of dealing with and interpreting certain aspects of their environment even though they cannot control them.
In recent years, cognitive behavioral therapy addicition treatment has become extremely popular with mental health professionals and other treatment specialists. Additionally, because CBT is a short-term format, it is considerably more affordable than other types of addiction treatment and recovery therapies. It is empirically supported and has a proven track record of effectively helping individuals to overcome behavioral disorders and substance dependencies.
Different approaches to CBT
Mental health professionals typically employ one of three different approaches to cognitive behavioral therapy, including:
- cognitive therapy
- multi-modal therapy
- rational emotive therapy
So as you can see, cognitive behavioral therapies can become very complex depending on the individual and the severity of their addiction or behavioral disorder.
If you would like more information regarding cognitive behavioral therapy addiction treatment as it applies to addiction treatment and recovery, please contact The Rehab Advisor. We will be happy to assist you in finding the right CBT addiction treatment and recovery program that best addresses your personal needs.