Cognitive Behavioral Therapy—Therapists and Counselors in Conway, AR
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) focuses on changing people’s lives by first changing their thought patterns. CBT helped clients experience lasting change through adjusting their thinking. In particular, clients with anxiety and depression felt symptom relief from CBT that equaled the relief they experienced from medication. CBT is a proven therapeutic method for sustainable change in people’s lives because it often equips them with cognitive and emotional skills they are able to utilize for the rest of their lives.
The counselors and therapists at Thriveworks Conway offer cognitive behavioral therapy, and we have seen first-hand the power of changed thinking. If you’d like to experience it for yourself, reach out to us today to schedule your first appointment.
How Can Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Help?
During a session of CBT, therapists and clients will often work through a specific and practical scenario the client is currently facing. It may be any psychological, social, emotional, and/or relational challenge. Together, the therapist and client process the event. The focus is not upon the event per se, but the time is usually focused upon how the client is responding to and thinking about the event.
Although this list is not exhaustive, a few of the difficulties clients may present at CBT may be related to…
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder
- General health issues
- Self-destructive habits
- Relationship issues
- Depression
- Self-mutilation
- Anger management
- Mood swings
- Anxiety
- Insomnia
- Drug and/or alcohol addiction
- Post-traumatic stress disorder
- Child and adolescent issues
Examples of Common Cognitive Distortions
The negative, untrue thoughts that plagued Jeff will haunt everyone at some point. They are common but very destructive because thoughts are intertwined with actions. Untrue thinking often escalates to unhelpful actions. The first step in breaking that escalation is to recognize cognitive distortions. A few common ones include…
- “Black and white” or polarized thinking puts all of life into an either-or category: horrifying-or-peaceful, good-or-bad, delicious-or-disgusting.
- Filtering negates anything positive or good. Only the negative and adverse reaches a person’s perspective.
- Catastrophizing expects the worst outcome. Signs that something may turn out well are dismissed and any setback is taken as a sign of impending doom.
- Overgeneralization takes one experience and draws a universal principle from it. Like Jeff in the example above, one tough interaction with his parents does not mean that he is a bad son.
- Blaming seeks to assign fault whenever and wherever it can. However, often times, blame is neither necessary nor helpful.
- Emotional reasoning makes one’s internal feelings equivalent with an external realty. Like Jeff’s situation, Jeff felt guilty, but he did not do anything wrong. The feeling and the external circumstances are different realities.
Scheduling Cognitive Behavioral Therapy at Thriveworks Conway
What changes would you make if you could? If you are ready to make changes, we are ready to help. Thriveworks Conway has appointments available for cognitive behavioral therapy. If you contact Thriveworks Conway, your first appointment may be the same week. We work with most insurance plans, and we offer weekend and evening appointments are available.
Let’s work together. Call Thriveworks Conway today.