Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT): Thoughts, experiences, advice

hi Fedupwithit,

I started seeing a CBT therapist at the end of 2012 after suffering the whole year with what I thought was stress, and heart palpitations after the GP could find no physical problem. I saw him for 18 months, working through so many issues that I had but didn't realise had names! The stress was anxiety and was the source of the palpitations. We looked at using Mindfulness as a way of breaking harmful thought patterns. We also looked at my constant worrying about everything, low self esteem, lack of confidence, poor body image, how to manage difficult situations with work colleagues, and how to stand up for myself. I had started self harming so we also worked on managing that.

He was also trained in EMDR and we were going to work with that for some childhood traumas but I was unable to proceed. Overall I do think the CBT helped, but I had to believe that I could help myself. Some sessions left me feeling worse initially as we explored the reasons for my ways of thinking, but then we looked at how to change my perception of some things. My place of work and parenting issues were my main stressors, and in the end I left the job. Parenting skills were discussed too, and my way of handling certain behaviours from the children was improved.

Do you question your therapist about how he/she thinks it is going? I often asked for his opinion / feedback as my perception was that I couldn't be "fixed" but was surprised by how much he believed I was improving. Certainly I had been in a bad place mentally, and now I'd say I am much improved. :)

I did CBT online back in 2012 and it did help with my anxiety levels when out shopping as I was having really bad panic attacks in shops / crowded places.  It does still work generally but if I'm having a bad time off it with severe depression the panic attacks come back with a vengeance when in crowded places.

Hello everyone,

How are you today? Have you seen this older discussion?

Have you ever turned to cognitive behavioural therapy or any other kind of therapy for your mental health? What was that experience like? Has therapy helped you ease your anxiety, depression or other symptoms? Is it something you continue with today?
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Don't hesitate to share your experiences with us here!

Take care,
Courtney