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CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy)

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CBT is the acronym for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. The term “cognitive” comes from the Latin “cognoscere,” meaning “to recognize.” CBT techniques and CBT worksheets can help people reveal and clarify thoughts, attitudes, and expectations.

What Is CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy)?

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, is an extension of psychotherapy invented by psychiatrist Aaron Beck in the 1960s. As a form of behavioral therapy, CBT treats problems by modifying dysfunctional emotions, behaviors, and thoughts. Based on the cognitive model, CBT is founded on the understanding that a person’s perception of a situation has a greater effect on them than the situation itself. Additionally, by helping to change unhelpful thinking that clouds perception, CBT techniques are designed to create improvement in mood and functioning.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy can be a beneficial tool for stress management. Specifically, key CBT techniques include conceptualization of specific beliefs or behaviors, and letting go of automatic processes that result in negative thought patterns.

Employed for numerous mental health challenges, CBT focuses on shifting the thoughts and beliefs that lead to emotional difficulties and self-created misery. Furthermore, CBT techniques and CBT worksheets have proven useful both in counseling sessions and in the periods between sessions.

Sources: Beck Institute, US National Library of Medicine (NIH)

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