Maybe you’ve wondered if you could benefit from cognitive behavioral therapy. But you’ve hesitated to book a session with a CBT therapist. You’re not sure what to expect in sessions, and you’re nervous about opening up to someone you don’t know. This is perfectly normal. When it comes to mental health, knowledge is power. Learning all about how a typical CBT session proceeds can help you feel more comfortable with starting therapy. If you have a general idea of what you’ll be working on, you might feel more relaxed going into your first session! Here are a few things that happen during a usual CBT session.
Intake Process
During your first CBT session, your therapist will walk you through an intake process. You’ll have the opportunity to share the challenges you’re currently facing, the symptoms you’ve been experiencing, and any other relevant information about your lifestyle. You don’t have to share sensitive personal information right away. It’s natural to want to take some time to get comfortable with your therapist before opening up about certain issues. However, it’s important to be honest in what you choose to share so that your therapist can get to know you and personalize your treatment plan.
Set Goals
Once your therapist has a thorough picture of your background, you can start going over your goals for therapy. Your therapist will inquire about what you want to work on and achieve throughout your sessions. You don’t have to set ambitious goals! These goals can relate to your relationships, career, or other areas of your personal life. By setting realistic goals, your therapist can tailor your sessions specifically to your needs.
Explore Negative Thought Cycles
In CBT sessions, you’ll primarily focus on identifying and breaking down negative thought patterns. For instance, during a particular session, your therapist might ask you to hone in on specific negative beliefs that you hold about yourself. They will explore how these thoughts influence your feelings, which in turn affect your actions - and how these actions continue to negatively impact your thoughts. It’s a vicious cycle, and your therapist can show you how specific beliefs contribute and keep you stuck in these patterns.
Question Unhelpful Beliefs
Once you’ve identified a negative belief, your therapist will walk you through the process of analyzing this belief. Where did the belief come from? When do you first remember thinking this? Did someone else tell you this when you were younger? Most importantly, your therapist will prompt you to question whether or not the belief is actually true. When you dig into it, you might realize that there’s actually little to no evidence for some of your most strongly held beliefs about yourself. These realizations can be liberating.
Building New Beliefs
Throughout your sessions, you’ll also work on building up new beliefs. For instance, perhaps the negative beliefs you’ve analyzed with your therapist revolve around your relationships with others. You might tell yourself that your friends and family are annoyed by you, and they don’t really want to spend time with you. But your therapist might prompt you to adopt different, more realistic beliefs: when people invite you somewhere, it’s because they simply want to spend time with you. Adopting new beliefs isn’t about forced positivity, but about identifying more helpful thoughts.
At the end of a session, your therapist might even assign you homework if appropriate. In therapy, homework isn’t graded, but doing these extra exercises outside of sessions can help you make faster progress towards your goals.
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Are you curious about the benefits of CBT for anxiety? Working with a therapist can help. Reach out to us today to discuss your options for scheduling your first anxiety therapy session.