Why Is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) So Effective?

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is one of the most widely used forms of therapy worldwide. Therapists rely on it to treat different disorders, which has proven very effective over the years.

CBT is a considerable part of the intensive outpatient program in Tucson by In Balance Counseling. Read on for the answer to “why is cognitive behavioral therapy effective?”

What Is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy?

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is a type of therapy that explores the connections between our thoughts and behavior. It helps people understand and challenge negative thoughts. It takes place over a fixed number of sessions.  

The goal of CBT includes the following:

• Teach the patient how to recover from a despondency caused by mental health disorders and stress 
• Help the patient to learn strategies to help themselves without the need for a therapist
• Encourage patients to challenge negative beliefs and recognize positive ways to tackle life situations and achieve positive outcomes
• Help patients live active, fulfilling lives

Why CBT is Highly Effective

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy is effective because it relies on the cognitive model of emotional response. The model states that our behaviors and feelings come from our thoughts instead of external stimuli.

CBT embraces a problem-focused and goal-oriented approach and doesn’t rely on psychoanalysis. It is highly engaging, and the patient is accountable for the therapy results.

The therapy approach focuses on the present instead of analyzing the patient’s historical development. Most CBT treatments require five to twenty sessions to show results. Other therapies will require months or years of multiple sessions to generate similar results.

One of the answers to “why is cognitive behavioral therapy effective?” is that CBT is an excellent form of therapy for helping patients understand how they can change their lives by changing their thoughts. It doesn’t try to change past fears or actions.

It also gives patients hope about their condition. It achieves this by highlighting how our thoughts are not always an accurate depiction of reality.

Most mental health conditions thrive off negative thoughts. CBT breaks the pattern and brings clarity.

What Conditions Can CBT Help Treat?

CBT can help with the following mental health conditions:

• Anxiety. CBT is an effective therapy for different types of anxiety disorders, including social anxiety, panic disorder, and phobias.
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). CBT treats OCD by trying to understand the causes of unwanted intrusive thoughts.
• Eating disorders. CBT effectively treats various eating disorders, including binge eating and bulimia nervosa.
• Bipolar disorder. CBT addresses the feeling of guilt and other thoughts and beliefs that accompany manic episodes.

Get Outpatient Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in Tucson, AZ

We hope we’ve answered the question “why is cognitive behavioral therapy effective?” in this post. Do you have any questions? Don’t hesitate to reach out.

At In Balance Counseling, we provide high-quality intensive outpatient services in a group setting for people dealing with drug and alcohol abuse and those dealing with co-occurring mental health issues.

Learn more about our intensive outpatient program.

Call In Balance Counseling at 520-722-9631 for quality CBT treatment in Tucson, AZ.