CBT - Any good?

[Alison1]

Hey Guys,

Just wondered if anyone has had CBT (cognitive behaviour therapy) and found it helped/worked?

I have tried counselling and anxeity management and neither were really helpful (or had the magical recovery I expected). I am due an appointment to have an assessment at my GP's and I was going to ask him if he could refer me for CBT, as I've read it's the most helpful for anxiety and depression.

Any info/advice would be great. :)

Thanks.

[Vixxy]

It is helpful, but it wont be a miracle cure. It will get you to challenge the thought processes that lead to your anxiety attacks. Its a fair bit of work, but I think worth it.

[natalier]

I am about to start sessions so wil tell you if it is helpying

[Alison1]

Hi Vixxy and Natalier,

Just wanted to say thanks for the advise/info. Can't say I'm looking forward to challenging the thought process but I know it's got to be done. Yeah, let me know how you get on.

Thanks again.x

[cwoz82]

I hope it works out for you, I'm in the referral process at the moment having gone to my doctors Friday.I really am praying that whilst I doubt I will be without anxiety that it will help with the day to day constant stream of anxiety.The counsellor was good whilst I was going however she dealt with controlling panic/anxiety attacks and not actually dealing with the root cause so hopefully this is what CBT will get to grips with.

[Bill]

Sometimes people say CBT hasn't cured them but really it's a tool to help people cure themselves so you have to be prepared to use it however uncomfortable it makes you feel for it to work.:hugs:

[ozjeff]

hi everyone,
alison , im with bill.
cbt gives you the tools to help yourself, but ultimately only you can effect them, ( which is really difficult when you feel truly rotten, but with persistance gets easier ) :D

[Bill]

( which is really difficult when you feel truly rotten, but with persistance gets easier )

This is very true so I thought I'd try to explain a little why based on my own experiences and what I've learnt.

Just a few basic examples...

If someone has a phobia, say of dogs, just the sight of a dog will make them panic so they'll do all they can to avoid going near it. CBT uses a gradual exposure to your fear so the therapist wil get the sufferer to very gradually over a long period of time to move closer and closer to a dog until they can touch it and feel at ease with it.

If someone sufferers from health phobia, just hearing a word related to an illness will trigger them to feel panicky so they'll do all they can to avoid hearing that word. For instance, if a programme appears on tv related to that illness, the sufferer will often feel too afraid to even go near the tv and get someone else to turn it over or off to avoid hearing and seeing the illness. The therapist would therefore work work with the sufferer so that the subject matter no longer sends them into a panic.

If someone suffers from OCD caused by intrusive thoughts and worries, the therapist works with the sufferer so that they no longer feel the need to repeat rituals to make their anxiety feelings go away.

If someone is agoraphobic and get panic attacks, the therapist will gradually expose the sufferer to them to show the sufferer how to think and the right techniques to use to eventually show them that panics can't do any harm and there's actually nothing to fear.

Cbt is about exposure to your fears. Confronting your fears in the "right" way and de-sensitising the sufferer so that they're no longer sensitive to words, thoughts or actual things related to their fear.

The reason why it's feels so hard at first is because to begin with you're terrified of your fear but as you gradually learn how to cope, the fear subsides so the therapy becomes easier.

Like I say though, cbt only works if you're prepared and feel able to use the therapy because if you're not and just say no, I can't do this because you feel too terrified, cbt will never work. Cbt only works if you're willing and are prepared to put faith in your therapist.

Having said that, I remember seeing at least 2 therapists who were so dismissive of my fears that I felt I had no faith in them whatsoever. Since overcoming anxiety means overcoming fear, you have to feel secure with who's helping you so there's no way I could put my trust in them. So what did I do? I felt I had no choice but to help myself overcome the fears I could and learn how to live with the fears I couldn't so that my anxiety didn't rule me and I could get on with my life.

That was just my experience though. I've heard of Many people who have had really good therapists including an agoraphobic sufferer whose therapist helped them to totally overcome their panics so that they are now back at work and enjoying holidays abroad.

Just to add, there are therapists, psychologists etc who often specialise in different fields so when you are referred, they will determine which therapy would be of most help to you. For me, the best help I ever received was from an NHS psychologist who really opened my eyes so that I could see a way out of my despair. I'll always be indebted to him. He was brilliant.

Anyway, hope that's of help to you.:hugs: