COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL
THERAPY IN CHICAGO
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is a popular therapy for treating anxiety, depression, addictions and PTSD. It is an empirically supported treatment that usually yields results after a short few months.
CBT explores the relationships between thoughts, feelings and behaviors. CBT is a very practical treatment aimed at helping individuals identify and alter dysfunctional thinking patterns.
If you struggle with some of the common “faulty” thinking patterns below, you will probably benefit from some CBT strategies such as cognitive restructuring.
Catastrophizing: Immediately assuming the most catastrophic outcome. For example: You notice you have a headache and then immediately assume it must be a brain tumor.
Personalization: Taking full blame for a situation that in reality involved multiple factors: For example: Your parents get divorced and you are convinced it is entirely your fault when in reality there were likely many different factors leading to their divorce.
Polarized Thinking: Also known as “black and white” thinking or “all or nothing” thinking. For example: If you’re usually a straight A student and you receive a B on a test, you conclude that you are stupid.
Emotional Reasoning: Believing that feelings are facts. For example: I feel worthless therefore that must certainly mean that I am actually worthless.
CHICAGO COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL TREATMENT
The Chicago CBT therapists at Cityscape Counseling incorporate cognitive behavioral treatment interventions to address classic depression and anxiety symptoms. CBT for anxiety, CBT for depression, and other interventions such as CBT for OCD and CBT for insomnia, are aimed at helping individuals identify unhelpful thought patterns, evaluate data for and against the conclusions your mind has drawn, monitor how these thought patterns are influencing your moods and behaviors, and reconstruct more helpful thinking patterns.