Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) at Kind Mind

CBT is a widely-used psychological approach based on the interconnection between our thoughts, feelings and behaviours and it aims to modify unhelpful patterns of these which add to psychological distress. CBT is effective in treating most mental health disorders, including anxiety disorders, mood disorders, eating disorders, and substance use disorders to name a few.

Kind Mind Psychologists understand everyone is different in the ways they think based on their personal experiences and therefore offer individually tailored CBT sessions online to their clients to address difficulties.

What is Cognitive Behavioural Therapy?

CBT is an evidence-based approach grounded in the theory that our thoughts influence our emotions and our emotions influence our behaviours.

It also stems from the idea these thoughts are automatic, (meaning we are not aware of them and just believe them) and often irrational or negative, adding to distress levels.

CBT strategies aim to identify automatic thoughts and modify these using evidence, which changes how we feel and then how we behave and over time this improves mood and well-being.

How CBT Works

The Process of CBT

At Kind Mind Psychology a treatment plan is discussed with each client based on a thorough assessment and their desired treatment goals.

Treatment plans typically involve providing psychoeducation on the individual issues as well as CBT interventions i.e., cognitive restructuring, behavioural activation, exposure techniques, behavioural experiments, and skill building techniques.

CBT Techniques and Strategies

Some techniques and strategies common in CBT are:

• Cognitive restructuring: CBT theorists believe the way we interpret events is influenced by many factors, for instance, our past experiences, trauma, our personality type or temperament, stress levels at the time etc. as opposed to the actual event. This means that a person may have a distorted or biased way of seeing an event which causes a negative feeling and unhelpful behaviour. Through cognitive restructuring, individuals learn to identify and challenge these distortions, replacing them with more realistic and balanced thoughts.

• Behavioural activation: Psychological distress and mental health disorders are maintained and worsened through unhelpful coping behaviours such as avoidance (avoiding situations, gaming, scrolling, or using drugs or alcohol) or withdrawing from those who care. CBT focuses on breaking the cycle of these types of behaviours by increasing more positive coping behaviours to improve mood and reduce symptoms.

• Exposure techniques: It is common with anxiety disorders and trauma-related conditions, that avoidance of feared situations or objects can exacerbate symptoms over time. CBT incorporates gradual exposure techniques, which allow individuals to slowly confront their fears in a safe and controlled environment. Repeated exposure helps individuals desensitise to these fears, leading to reduced anxiety and increased confidence.

• Self-monitoring and behavioural experiments: These are CBT strategies which coach individuals to become aware of their thoughts, emotions, and behaviours through keeping thought records outside of sessions. Behavioural experiments are designed to test the validity of certain beliefs or predictions through real-life experiences, providing opportunities for learning and growth.

• Skill-building: This is the stage of CBT which focuses on improving practical skills and coping strategies to manage distress. These may include relaxation techniques, problem-solving skills, assertiveness training, and communication skills.  Individuals become better equipped to handle life's challenges and maintain their progress beyond therapy through practicing these skills.

Disorders Treated with CBT

CBT is a flexible and evidence-based approach that can be tailored to suit the needs of people across a wide range of mental health disorders, making it one of the most widely used and effective forms of psychotherapy today. The following conditions listed are commonly treated using CBT:

1. Anxiety Disorders: CBT is used to treat all anxiety disorders, including OCD because of its focus on identifying and challenging irrational fears which contribute to anxiety. As well as using exposure techniques to desensitise anxiety sufferers to their fears.

2. Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): While primarily managed with medication and behavioural interventions, CBT can support those with ADHD to improve their organisational skills, time management skills, and coping strategies for impulsivity and distractibility. CBT can be helpful with restructuring unhelpful self-beliefs often experienced in ADHD, leading to an improvement in confidence and self-esteem.

3. Depression: CBT helps individuals identify and challenge negative thought patterns and develop coping strategies to manage depressive symptoms.

4. Eating Disorders: CBT helps individuals challenge distorted thoughts and beliefs about body image, food, and weight, while also addressing unhealthy behaviours commonly related to eating disorders. There is research that supports the use of CBT for conditions like bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder, and anorexia nervosa.

5. Perinatal Mental Health: CBT is used in perinatal therapy to identify and modify any unhelpful thoughts, feelings and behaviour patterns, and helps build confidence for change through developing more positive coping skills.

6. Substance Use Disorders and Behavioural Addictions: CBT is used to help all forms of addiction through identifying and challenging triggers and thoughts as well as developing positive coping strategies to manage cravings and urges to prevent relapse.

 What are The Benefits of CBT

The benefits of CBT include its structured approach, time effectiveness, and its focus on developing positive coping strategies. CBT is a simple yet effective approach, that if practiced, can rewire your thinking to improve your mood and relationship with yourself and others over time.

CBT can be used to treat most mental health conditions and can be integrated into other treatment methods i.e., Schema Therapy and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT).

CBT Services at Kind Mind

Online CBT therapy sessions offered at Kind Mind Psychology are individually tailored based on a thorough clinical assessment as well as the client’s therapy goals. CBT sessions are flexible depending on each person’s needs, however they do follow a basic structure.

For example, after the assessment process, sessions are generally structured as follows:

1. Review of past sessions and progress achieved.

2. Address any problems that may have arisen since the previous session.

3. Implement strategies to continue progress toward treatment goals.

4. Set homework tasks to be practised between sessions.