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View Full Version : Thought countering is key to CBT success



cece
24-01-11, 01:16
Unlike traditional therapy, it's the work you do in between sessions countering your thoughts in the TEA forms that are key to having success with CBT. There are other helpful exercises like the one that helps you put things back into perspective to fight the tendency to blow things out of proportion but countering your thoughts is the heart of cbt and the only exercise I still use to this day.
In my opinion less is more when it comes to cbt.
My group was real basic and we used two great books Been There, Done That? Do This! by Sam Obitz (tao3.com) and Feeling Good by David Burns (amazon.com). Our group leader said that Feeling Good is probably the most comprehensive book ever written on cbt, but we mainly used it as a reference book because they said it would overwhelm us as it goes into great detail and has too many exercises in it. So we used the other book and the TEA forms and the putting things back into perspective exercise in it almost exclusively in our group with great success.
We also did a little exposure therapy at the end of the group to build our confidence.
So in conclusion, be suspicious of any cbt therapy that spends a lot of time talking about your problems (rather than dealing with them) after the first session or two or if it gets too complicated. Simple is best when it comes to cbt:yesyes:
And do your homework everyday, it will not only help you feel better and deal with stress and anxiety better it will also build your confidence in yourself as you will be doing the work that gets you better and it feels so gratifying:D

davew
19-02-11, 21:18
Cece, Thank you for posting this! I am doing cbt on my own just using the book by obitz and doing the TEA forms everyday, sometimes several times a day. The progress I have made in the past four months is so much more than I made in years of psychotherapy. I also like that I am no longer reliant on a therapist and in control of my recovery. I saw some other posts of yours on other threads and it sounds like you have been using the TEA forms for a while. I would love to hear more about their lobng term effects and any warnings you have about potential pitfalls I may need to avoid? I can't shake the fear that my anxiety will eventually come back and these good times won't last? Thanks!:flowers: