5 Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) Strategies For Managing Anxiety
What is Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is an effective, short-term form of psychotherapy. It can help individuals identify and explore their thoughts, feelings, and behaviours to better understand how they interact. CBT helps individuals identify and address the underlying causes of their problems and develop new and healthier ways of thinking and behaving. It can be helpful for many mental health issues, including anxiety, depression, phobias, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and substance use disorders. CBT can be beneficial in managing stress and helping individuals to develop coping strategies for difficult situations. Additionally, it can be used to help individuals build self-confidence, improve relationships, and achieve personal goals. In short, there are many CBT strategies for managing anxiety that are effective in supporting individuals learn how to better manage their thoughts, feelings, and behaviours and create positive changes in their lives.
Treating Anxiety with CBT
The goal of CBT is for the client to develop and practice skills that are directly connected to their individual needs. For example, someone suffering from social anxiety (i.e., fear in social situations) might work on taking small steps towards becoming more comfortable with small talk, whereas someone suffering from obsessive-compulsive disorder (i.e., repeated unwanted thoughts of sensation) might work on reducing the amount they respond to their unwanted thoughts.
CBT differs from other anxiety treatments as it uses an organized, dual approach that creates noticeable results quickly. Although other techniques may focus solely on cognitive components of anxiety, such as anxious thoughts, CBT will prioritize behavioural factors. When a person adjusts their behaviours, they can significantly lower their overall anxiety symptoms.
5 CBT Strategies for Managing Anxiety
1- Anxiety Psychoeducation
Psychoeducation is a stage used within CBT to allow the individual to learn more about their condition. Sometimes individuals suffering from anxiety may often have limited knowledge about what they’re feeling and why. They might be able to acknowledge they have a fear of something and constantly feel anxious or worried but that’s all.
Anxiety Psychoeducation is a great first step in overcoming problems arising from anxiety. A CBT therapist is able to provide the individual with helpful information so they are able to have more awareness of what they are feeling.
2- Challenging Negative Thoughts
Suffering from anxiety can lead to a flood of thoughts and usually, those thoughts can be troubling. Thought challenging is an effective CBT technique that isn’t particularly about thinking positively in troubling times. It is a technique to help you consider things from different angles and back them up with evidence from your life. If short form, it is looking at the whole picture.
How do you challenge your thoughts?
Have I had any experiences that show that this thought is not always completely true?
How might I think about this situation differently when I do not feel this way?
Am I jumping to any conclusions that aren’t justified by the evidence?
Do I know that this thought is true or do I just feel that it is?
Even if there is a grain of truth in this thought, is it helpful for me to think this way?
3- Pattern Tracking
The objective of CBT treatment is to change thinking and behaviour patterns in order to minimize symptoms and enhance functioning. This strategy is frequently aimed at assisting clients to notice these patterns and find strategies to stop them before they become problematic.
Common CBT assignments include journaling their thoughts, emotions, behaviours and external or internal circumstances that have made them anxious or stressed.
4- Facing Fears: Exposure
Anxious persons frequently avoid situations that make them uneasy. In CBT, the process of facing fears is called exposure therapy or exposure tasks. Exposure therapy is commonly recommended to decrease avoidance, reduce anxiety, and improve confidence. It is a CBT technique therapists use to work with individuals to overcome their fears and anxieties. This strategy involves gradually and repeatedly exposing yourself in a safe environment to the feared stimuli.
For example, during exposure therapy, CBT therapists may encourage individuals with social anxiety to start by walking around a familiar store and asking for assistance on something they are interested in to help them become more comfortable speaking in public.
To prepare for these exposures, CBT therapists teach clients relaxation methods (which we will talk about more in-depth in the next point). Exposures allow people to grow confidence in their abilities to confront their fears while also learning strategies for better anxiety management.
5- Relaxation and stress reduction techniques
Relaxation techniques reduce stress and allow you to think more clearly. In turn, these can help you take back control of a situation. These techniques might include:
· deep breathing exercises like Physiological Sighing
· progressive muscle relaxation
· meditation
These CBT strategies for managing anxiety are quick to learn and may be used whenever you feel anxious, such as in line to pay for groceries. Learning and applying relaxation techniques can help to lessen the impact of anxiety and reduce symptoms more quickly and effectively.
How to use our Services for Anxiety:
Did you know that we offer CBT in Sarnia Lambton? At Greatlakes Neurofeedback & Counselling, we have skilled therapists on board that use therapy techniques including CBT. Our team can support you with implementing and explaining useful CBT strategies in your counselling session to help you manage your anxiety.
