Article by John Scott

Putting aside all the pointless arguments about whether people should get so anxious, the practical reality is that they do. If this seriously disrupts their ability to lead normal lives, then something should be done. Common humanity requires that society makes reasonable provision for their treatment. The pharmaceutical industry would have us believe drugs are the best answer to all our problems and, when it comes to dealing with anxiety disorders, our doctors have a mass to choose from. We start of with antidepressants. Yes, the name apparently suggests their function is limited to treating depression, but they can be just as useful in treating anxiety disorders. So now your doctor decides which variety to try out on you. There are the SSRIs and the tricyclics, and do not forget the MAOIs. Then we get into the anti-anxiety drugs, most often derived from the benzodiazepines. If those do not take your fancy, there are always the beta-blockers. The cabinet in your bathroom can be filled to overflowing (subject to deciding whether all these options are covered by your health plan).

But, for all this choice, there is one inconvenient truth. All the independent research evidence (that’s the research not paid for by the pharmaceutical industry) shows psychotherapy to be more effective than medication. The problem with trying to treat an emotional problem with a pill is there cannot be a conversation about why you are feeling the emotion and how you are going to deal with its consequences. Talking through the problems with a mental health specialist has the best success record in restoring quality of life and avoiding a relapse into an anxiety state. For a start, it treats you as a human being. You become the focus of attention. People listen to you and advise you on how to improve the quality of your life. In the current healthcare market, you see your doctor for a few minutes, collect a prescription and pick up the bill on the way out. People respond well when they believe their interests are being taken seriously. Their treatment is progressed rapidly if the advice they receive is seen to be useful. There is no point in advising people out of books. This has to be a hands-on approach to changing each person’s attitudes and habits. The best form of psychotherapy is cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). “Cognitive” because you want people to understand their emotional responses to different situations. Only if they understand why they feel anxious can they begin the process of changing their responses. “Behavioral” because the therapist will train people to change the way they behave. This means forcing people to confront the situations in which they feel anxious or fearful, and teaching them how to react more positively.

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Question by : Does cognitive behavioral therapy work?
Today I saw a Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner at my university for anxiety, she prescribed me medication but also recommended cognitive behavioral therapy. My mom and one of my friends are also encouraging me to try CBT because I don’t really lose anything if it doesn’t work or I don’t like it. Have you ever been in cognitive behavioral therapy? Does it work?

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Article by John Scott

The world always seems a better place when an acronym really works. In this case, the word is NICE which currently stands for the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (the powers-that-be added the “Health and” later on). Now we all know the Brits live like savages in caves and are routinely culled by doctors working for the death squads sometimes called the National Health Service. But NICE is actually a good idea. It routinely investigates all the potential treatments available for each disease or disorder to find out which work the best. It then only funds the most efficient and effective treatments. If cave-dwelling Brits want the other stuff, they have to pay for it out of their own pockets. This sets national standards for treatments and overcomes the so-called zip code lottery where the quality of treatment depended on whether each local hospital was up with the latest medical research. In the US, everyone in the healthcare industry is in business and sells treatments with the highest profit margin regardless whether the treatments are the best. So, unless you do your own research to find out which treatments actually represent good value for money, you are at the mercy of your local doctors and their for-profit employers.

Anyway, NICE has been steadily working its way through all the major treatments (that’s drugs, medical devices and surgical procedures) and, not so long ago, it reached pain management. This is the emerging speciality that sees pain as a disease or disorder in its own right. So, after you have treated the underlying problem causing the pain and produced the best outcome, you move on to treat the continuing pain. For these purposes, the new hospital departments are cross-disciplinary with contributions being made from specialists who previously had worked separately. Now all come together to find the best solutions for each individual patient. This recognizes everyone as potentially unique with a different medical history, different job constraints and family commitments. The plan is to come up with a holistic treatment program to give everyone the best chance of achieving a good quality of life.

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Question by simplicity_02: Case Studies on Depression with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy?
Anyone know where i can find case studies on depression with cognitive behavioral therapy?

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Article by Jeremy Landa

Panic disorder is a condition in which the body and the mind seem to loose temporary control. Conditions such as a racing heart, palpitations, shortness of breath, chest pain, fast pulse rate, dizziness and sometimes feeling nausea’s are common symptoms. In order to learn how to control panic attacks it’s important to first know the symptoms that you experience. It is in this way you will be able to eventually understand the root cause of the panic attacks in the first place to overcome them entirely. Many people have started to use Cognitive Behavioral Therapies (CBT) to solve their panic and anxiety problems. So far, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy has been one of the most successful forms of treatment for people undergoing high anxiety or panic attack problems. CBT has proven to be one of the best approaches to take since it deals 100% with natural methods to curing panic attacks. By using simple understandings, a different perspective of the situation, and well grounded techniques to overcoming and learning how to control panic attacks, individuals are able to see results just days into therapy. Patients are helped by being walked through the recovery process and are shown through their thinking process what exactly is causing their problems. They are helped to understand how their thinking process is creating their panic attacks and vice versa. And by changing their state of mind patients can learn how to control panic attacks and prevent them from starting in the first place. CBT has two parts. Firstly identifying and changing the distorted thinking pattern of the patient which leads to the panic attack, and secondly desensitizing through the repeated exposure to the situation which is feared.With CBT you are shown how panic attacks are a product of your anxiety, fear and thinking. It is nothing but your bodily sensation of the anxiety. The cognitive approach is one such natural treatment to overcome panic attack which does not result in any side effects. You are shown how to control panic attacks by controlling your fear. And it is the very fear of having another panic attacks that causes us to have more in the future. For example if a patient has a strong phobia for traveling in an elevator then every time that patient has to get into the elevator, the fear slowly starts to take over and a panic attack may eventually erupt. By dwelling on that same fear, you set yourself up to continue to repeat that same fear every time you have to use the elevator. Greater emphasis is placed on the fear of the elevator that it completely overrides our rational state of mind and prevents our mind from remaining calm. The cognitive approach will teach you how to recognize and free yourself from your fear – whatever it may be. With traditional medication you may be able to temporary solve the problem, but after sometime it will eventually return. Comparing the traditional method to CBT, patients generally don’t relapse and retain what they learn through therapy so panic attacks are never a problem again. In my personal opinion, the Panic Away program, developed by Barry Joe McDonaugh, is the best form of Self-Help CBT that is currently available. This self-help program is 100% natural, doesn not require any medicines or doctors and is already responsible for successfully recoving over 40,000 patients worldwide. This has been the definite answer for thousands of people and it could be for you too. I’ve just been using it for a few weeks and am already starting to see great results so make sure to check out Panic Away right away.

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Article by Ryan FitzGerald

Clinical psychologists are providing important expertise to many sufferers of psychological problems. Increasing number of people are suffering from different kinds of psychological diseases due to increasing pressures of work, life, relationships, competition and more. When the problem is at initial stages, it can be sorted out by the help of family and friends. However, when it becomes serious, it cannot be solved by the simple measures. It requires the skill and expertise of trained and professional clinical psychologist. Any kind of major psychological illness can be treated with different clinical treatments such as cognitive behavioral therapy, family counseling and more. About 1/4th world population needs professional help to deal with feelings and situations that seem beyond their control. Clinical psychologists can treat people with variety of problems including marital and family problems, anxiety, loneliness, illness and injury, psychological aspects of medical illness, addiction, behavioral problems, sexual issues, disturbance in eating and sleeping, children?s educational problems, difficulties at work, caring for the elderly and more. These professionals can also assist during natural disasters, crisis and terrorism. Whatever be your problem, you can approach a licensed clinical Psychologist. You can work with your psychologist to solve your problem in a confidential and supportive atmosphere. Some people might deny the importance of a professional for solving the psychological problems. However, you can see that they are very important for our society that is reeling under the high pressures. These are highly trained professionals who solve a problem by evaluating, classifying and treating the emotional and behavioral problems. You can judge their expertise by the fact that they undergo 7 years of education and training after completing their undergraduate degree. How can a clinical psychologist help patients?To help the patients, clinical psychologists have initial consultations with them to understand their problems. They talk about the history of the problem, classify and analyze it to find the right solution. They put the patients on suitable treatment with right therapy such as cognitive behavioral therapy and family counseling. Some psychologists may prescribe a series of tests to provide the right aid. A psychologist may prescribe you psychotherapy, which helps you learn more effective way to deal with problems. The psychologist may recommend family therapy or may also tell you to become part of a therapy group. H may also use specialized techniques such as behavioral modifications, bio feedback and stress management training. In some cases, he may also recommend visiting a medical physician for medical evaluation.The duration and course of treatment differs for different patients. Some people may gain from short term of therapy. To receive the prescribe therapy; patients need to go to the doctor once or twice a week. The treatment may be provided through outpatient care or inpatient care, depending upon the case. There are good websites such as therapytribe.com which provide great information about the psychological diseases, their treatment and can connect you to various therapists, clinical psychologists and other professionals.

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Article by Jack L Morrison

People who suffer with migraines know that it is a hassle and a struggle that can interfere with a lot of the aspects of your daily life. However you choose to address it, it can seem like you are not getting enough relief from your migraines. When you are looking for migraine headache treatment, some times reaching for the closest Advil will not help your case. That is why there are better and different ways to help heal and address your migraines. One way is to use cognitive behavioral therapy for migraines, it is a great way to be sure that you are able to cure your migraines. This kind of therapy works with people who have migraines to help them identify when they are going to get a migraine. This kind of therapy helps you intercede and stop the migraine from happening, and there are steps you can take with your doctor to accomplish this feat.

The first thing you need to do is address your doctor about migraine headache treatment, and discuss cognitive behavioral therapy for your migraines. You work to identify the cause or the problem behavior that is causing your migraines and the struggle, and you can do so by keeping a journal of when you have your migraines, and the activities that prelude them. Establish a goal that you have in a mind, and it is one way to be sure you are working towards getting rid of your migraines for good, and then try to re-think your behaviors and your patterns. Establish a new way to work around certain things that trigger a migraine, so you can get over them.

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Article by Alan Wortman

A sense of lowered self-esteem affects many people in our society. One school of psychology that has been found to help people with this problem is cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). CBT is a form of therapy which focuses on and has the goal of helping people overcome emotional problems.

What characterizes CBT as a therapeutic approach? “Cognitive” applies to our mental processes such as memory, perception, and motivation. Behavior of course refers to our actions and conduct. Therapy has been described as a thorough and systematic way of approaching a life problem, usually in the area of emotions.One main strength of CBT is that it is based upon scientific studies. Not only have scientists been able to test and develop practical approaches to life problems, patients in this form of therapy frequently develop a somewhat scientific attitude toward themselves. As scientists will test a theory, individuals may test a perception or memory of a person or event in their life. They may ask, “is this reality or am I distorting my memories or perceptions”?

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Article by Charlene Nelson

When a person out of the blue feels a combination of symptoms leading to making him or her worried it can be defined as a panic attack. These panic attacks take place often with no visible causes. Researchers found that genetics, alcohol, serious illnesses, medications and drug withdrawal can cause these panic attacks.It happens frequently that people are unaware that they are having a panic attack.A panic attack can be short as 10 seconds to as long as 20 minutes. Treatments are widely available to aid people deal with the symptoms or the illness itself. There are two foremost methods that doctors take are: one, by cognitive behavioral therapy; and two, by taking medications.

Many disorders and also anxiety disorders are cured with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). It is regarded as the first line of therapy for a panic attack and the alternative for sufferers not reacting to medications. A therapist uses CBT to step by step expose his patient the grounds or cause of his anxiety. This is due to the assumption that fear of something is conditioned in a sufferer’s mind. Phobias are reinforced, when a patient constantly avoids the subject of his panic.As a result, it is crucial that a patient learn not to be afraid of the stimulus.In this method, the objective is tofind outhow one’s thinking process assesses and deals with the thoughts that causefear or fright. Subsequent to receiving information regarding the problem and how the treatment will be administered, the symptoms one would feel will be recreated in a controlled environment.This will be repeated up to five times a day for at least one minute.It can take weeks before a person is not troubled any longer by a sudden onset of symptoms.

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Question by Mella: how does cognitive behavioral therapy work?
and what would a session of cognitive behavioral therapy be like? i have a terrible fear of throwing up (emetophobia) and have been nervous about it for the past few days because the stomach flu is going around my house. i would like to try cognitive behavioral therapy. how does CBT work and what is an example of what a session of CBT might be like?

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