Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Brisbane Northside

Many people in Brisbane northside are taking cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) with their trusted mental health professional to help cope with the demands of daily life. Whether they are issues about work, relationships, finances, or daily life in general, it is important to sit down with a therapist and unpack all the mental or emotional baggage that hinders one from living a full life.

Cognitive behavioural therapy is a type of psychotherapy treatment where a therapist works with a patient to recognise unhealthy patterns of thought or behaviour and help them change the way they feel and cope with difficult situations. CBT involves a series of sit-down sessions for about an hour each week. Unlike other psychotherapy treatments, CBT is meant to be short-term lasting between 5 and 20 sessions depending on the case. It is also used to treat numerous health and mental problems, from sleeping issues to substance abuse, or eating disorders to schizophrenia and depression. Depending on the case, CBT may be combined with other treatments such as antidepressants or medication.

How Does Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Work?

The core principle of cognitive behavioural therapy is uncovering the negative thoughts and restructuring them into healthier, more realistic ones. Often, negative thoughts are a mere exaggeration of reality, or an obsession over a perceived reality, that could cause a person to self-sabotage or become self-destructive. Questioning these thoughts provide a more realistic perspective. Changing thoughts leads to changing attitude which then leads to changing behaviour.

The effects of CBT may take weeks or months, but it has been proven to have long term success. Some therapists employ techniques to reinforce therapy, such as practical exercises, reading, or writing assignments after a therapy session.

Techniques used in cognitive behavioural therapy

• Therapist sometimes asks patients to journal their thoughts and feelings over a certain period of time. This will help them identify the thought patterns that affected the patient’s emotions and behaviour based on their experience.
• Practicing mindfulness (or self-awareness) is about paying attention to one’s physical, mental, and emotional condition at the present moment, without giving judgment. This practice lets a person be more in control of their own thoughts, rather than be consumed by them.
• Social, physical, and thinking exercises

Types of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy

• Rational emotive behaviour therapy is focused on identifying irrational beliefs, challenging them, until one is able to recognise and change negative thought patterns.
• Cognitive therapy is bent on identifying and changing distorted or exaggerated thinking patterns, emotional responses, and behaviours.
• Multimodal therapy suggests that psychological issues must be treated by addressing seven interconnected modalities: behaviour, affect, sensation, imagery, cognition, interpersonal factors and drug/biological considerations.
• Dialectical behaviour therapy was originally developed to treat chronically suicidal individuals with borderline personality disorder. This method concentrates on thinking patterns and behaviours and incorporates strategies such as emotional regulation and mindfulness.

Cognitive behavioural therapy also works in these conditions:

• Irritable bowel syndrome
• Chronic fatigue syndrome
• Insomnia
• Substance abuse
• Obsessive compulsive disorder, bipolar disorder, and panic disorder
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Anger management issues
• Post-traumatic stress disorder
• Phobias
• Sexual issues

Need to see a Cognitive Behavioural Therapist Brisbane northside? The team at Ubuntu Medical Stafford can help you! Call us on (07) 3857 3777.

 

At Ubuntu Medical, we also provide therapy for Bipolar Disorder.