Have you ever wondered how counselling and therapy works? Ever wondered how effective antidepressants and anxiety medications are? Surprisingly, antidepressants (medications used for both anxiety and depression), while often necessary, are still not as effective as a particular type of therapy called Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (or CBT).* CBT is helpful because it is practical. Finding ways of thinking and coping that work for you is the goal. If a thought or belief is not true or helpful, you develop a more true and helpful belief. You not only learn how to find the evidence for or against your current thoughts and beliefs but you also get to test this new knowledge for yourself. Your therapist will help you learn how to do this. The reason so many can benefit from CBT is that we all have false beliefs that guide us through life. We may have learned these from our parents or friends or experiences that influenced us when we were young. These false beliefs limit us and keep us from reaching our goals and finding satisfaction in life. CBT comes in different types, including Rational Emotive Behavioural Therapy or REBT, Cognitive Therapy, Dialectic Behaviour Therapy and more. REBT, the type of CBT we use most frequently at the Balance Wellness Centre, is based on the premise that whenever we become upset, it is not the event taking place that upset us as much as the beliefs we hold about what this event means. For example, we may see our partner hugging another person and become very upset, thinking that they are cheating on us. When we find out that person our partner was talking to is a relative, the situation is not likely to upset us. Therefore, it is not the situation, but our beliefs about the situation that upset us. REBT stands for Rational (what we think) Emotive (our emotions) Behavioural (our behaviour) Therapy. As in the situation above, we have come to realize, it is what we think that dictates our emotions which, in turn, control our behaviour. So often we think it is the situation or other people's behaviour that controls our emotions. Realizing we can control our own thoughts and by this control our emotions and behaviour gives us an immense amount of power and control over our own lives! | What to expect from therapy: 1. A team effort between you, the client, and your therapist. Your therapist will not tell you what to think but rather guide you through the process. Soon, you will be able to do it on your own.
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