Cognitive Behavioural Therapy

About Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)

What is Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)?

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is a collective therapy comprising of both Cognitive and Behavioural psychotherapeutic approaches. CBT has been proven to alleviate a vast array of mental health problems, which are believed to occur and affect at least one in every four adults. CBT is based upon the belief that unwanted thinking patterns, behavioural and emotional consequences are learned over time.

The aim of Cognitive psychotherapy is to modify unwanted cognitions (thoughts and beliefs) whereas the aim of Behavioural psychotherapy is to help change behaviour in response to the unhelpful and unwanted thoughts. The overall aim of CBT is to identify unwanted and unhelpful thoughts triggering unwanted feelings and behaviours and thus learn to replace these with more balanced helpful thoughts and behaviours.

Problems CBT can Help

  • Panic Disorder with or without Agoraphobia
  • Specific Phobias e.g. spiders, lifts, blood / injury, confined spaces.
  • Generalised Anxiety Disorder and Chronic Worrying
  • Social Phobia including Paruresis
  • Hypochondriasis / Health Anxiety
  • Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
  • Depression
  • Body Dysmorphic Disorder
  • Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
  • Childhood Sexual Abuse
  • Habit Disorder including nail biting, trichotillomania
  • Sleep problems and General Health Problems including IBS, Chronic Fatigue and Chronic Pain.
  • Stress
  • Anger
  • Jealousy

Evidence for CBT

According to an independent body that was established to identify and promote scientifically evaluated good practice in physical and mental health, the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidelines in the UK, CBT is reported as being an evidence based type of psychotherapy that has been widely researched and proven, based upon outcome and effectiveness measures, to be the treatment of choice in alleviating and treating a range of emotional, psychological, behavioural and physical difficulties. www.nice.org.uk. Services offered by Lorraine are clinically excellent as advocated by NICE guidelines.

Individual CBT Treatment

What is involved in therapy?

Within therapy, both client and therapist collaboratively work together to gain an understanding about the presenting problem, and in particular, focusing upon understanding the interaction between thoughts, behaviours and feelings including physical reactions and emotions. Therapy is therefore likely to differ from person to person due to how you as an individual may experience that problem.

CBT is a structured focused approache, whereby the problem affecting the person is current (in the here and now). Treatment is time limited and goal driven – the duration of treatment can vary and last between 5 to 20 sessions. Treatment and pace of treatment is tailored to the needs of the individual. Progress and recovery are carefully monitored during treatment and evaluated regularly through the use of client and therapist rated measures. Sessions can be weekly or fortnightly and usually last 50 to 90 minutes.

CBT should enable you to develop techniques aimed at improving and managing your problem yourself, and homework set in-between sessions will require practice so that learning can be consolidated. For further detailed information regarding CBT please click here.

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Qualifications – who qualifies as a Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Psychotherapist?

It is important that your therapist treating you is accredited and registered in CBT. Unfortunately many psychotherapists and counsellors advertise and / or offer CBT but often hold registration and accreditation within other disciplines that are different from CBT. Moreover, it is also understood that many training courses in CBT are not accepted or endorsed by the appropriate regulatory bodies as they often lack appropriate training, qualifications and clinical supervision, and are therefore not accepted for CBT accreditation and registration as a CBT therapist.

An accredited CBT therapist provides a service that is arguable different from that of someone with less skills and qualifications. Lorraine is qualified and experienced specifically in CBT. Lorraine is provisionally accredited from the British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP) which means that she has satisfied the board with meeting the minimum training and standards required to deliver and practice in CBT, and undergone supervised practice, as a qualified Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Psychotherapist.

A register is available to check CBT status of your therapist is available by searching on the following specific CBT directories via the following website: British Association of Cognitive and Behavioural Psychotherapies, click here to visit the website.