Anyone had CBT?

[gauss101]

I start CBT therapy. this week, and wondered if anyone has had any experience of it. I don't have any phobias, or PTSD but panic attacks which started at work. I love my job, as a teacher, so find it odd that I should have while doing it. There are other things that have happened away from work, in my personal life, and assume that they contributed towards the stress. Really, it's the fear of the fear which makes me anxious. The "What if it happens again" syndrome.
Anyway, I'm wondering what happens in CBT and what can I expect on my first session.
Thanks.

[nomorepanic]

I will move this to the cbt forum so maybe you can have a read of the posts in there as well

[MyNameIsTerry]

If this is an initial consultation, the therapist will be trying to get all the information they need to understand your case and to determine any initial recommendations. They will also talk you through what to expect.

If this is your first CBT session then it can be a matter of talking to you to determine your main trigger and what you can do to prevent or manage them. Initially CBT is all about understanding how anxiety works, so they will explain bodily processes and give you handouts to read. They may also give you some information on such as relaxation and breathing techniques/panic attack techniques for you to start with.

The work thing is just how it can work gauss101, I was very confident in my career and thats where it really hit me. I went from working with people up to quite senior levels to struggling to even answer my deskphone.

CBT is not big on delving into the past, just a little detail, as its more interested in recovery from this point onward.

[Davit]

I've quit recommending CBT Because what I did is Different from what you people seem to be doing. What I did has a lot of information and explains why things work. It starts with relaxation and coping skills because later on you will need them when CBT as I know it starts digging into the reasons for Your specific anxiety and panic. Finally it removes these reasons, not just teach you how to get used to them. I'm sorry but I don't agree with Off the deep end exposure or get with the program therapy. Anxiety and panic are not a case of being weak, they are a case of being wrong. That you will only learn by learning how your mind actually works physically and that is a lot more work than exposure therapy. But what can I say, people do claim to get better doing exposure. I got worse.
Done right the triggers are not something you get used to, they no longer exist as they were.

[MyNameIsTerry]

I've quit recommending CBT Because what I did is Different from what you people seem to be doing. What I did has a lot of information and explains why things work. It starts with relaxation and coping skills because later on you will need them when CBT as I know it starts digging into the reasons for Your specific anxiety and panic. Finally it removes these reasons, not just teach you how to get used to them. I'm sorry but I don't agree with Off the deep end exposure or get with the program therapy. Anxiety and panic are not a case of being weak, they are a case of being wrong. That you will only learn by learning how your mind actually works physically and that is a lot more work than exposure therapy. But what can I say, people do claim to get better doing exposure. I got worse.
Done right the triggers are not something you get used to, they no longer exist as they were.

To be honest, Davit, given some of the services run 6 sessions of CBT as "high intensity", I would think it is a possibility that our IAPT service has stripped it down a bit.

They are currently doing the same to provide Dynamic Interpersonal Theraoy (DIT) which they have created as a stripdown now of psychodynamic therapy.

CBT was conducted in the psychotherapy teams and then IAPT came alone to bridge the gap between the GP and psychotherapy. Given they are stripping down a Level 4 therapy that normally takes over a year of often bi-weekly sessions into a CBT length on of about 6 months...its looking this way.

Maybe this is why so many people go through it and still are not much further forward?