Cognitive Therapy: A Case Study

Elena is an adolescent female, coming to the therapy process demonstrating through actions and words a great deal of anxiety and overall apathy for her situation. Elena is a smart, socially engaged Mexican American attending public high school. She opens the session with presenting problems regarding conflict over what she might do after high school.

Could Cognitive Process Therapy (CPT) conducted in a military setting be an effective intervention in the reduction of long term PTSD exposure in the identified patient and the impact on the family unit?

Before I returned her call, I did some research to be prepared to answer her questions.

Cognitive therapy (CT), is a form of psychotherapy that changes the thought process about personal thoughts and the world. The theory has been empirically validated in hundreds of cognitive science studies, and the therapy itself has

Cognitive behavioral therapy also known as CBT is a type of mental health counseling (psychotherapy). With CBT, “therapist works to develop warm relationship with the person and has the person carefully consider the evidence for his or her beliefs in order to see errors in his or her thinking” (Richard A. Griggs. Psychology a Concise Introduction. 435) by attending a required number of therapy sessions. Cognitive behavioral therapy helps people in knowing when they begin to have negative thoughts about themselves so they can view challenges clearer and fix their problems in a more effective way. CBT focuses on alternating negative thoughts and patterns to affect the changes in behavior. This approach is goal oriented and is an effective treatment

In this case study, cognitive behavioral therapy is the counseling approach that I would apply. Cognitive behavioral therapy helps find ways to help manage the problem that a client is going through and also helps the client learn, unlearn specific ways to behave. This counseling method is mainly used to treat clients with depression and anxiety. This counsling approach helps adapt new behaviors and thoughts.

Cognitive behavioral therapy believes that root of psychological problems is the wrong interpretation that people make such as faulty thinking, making incorrect decision, failing to distinguish between reality and fantasy. Cognitive therapy thinks that the way Henry feel and behave is influenced by how he perceives the structure of his experience. Individuals usually keep their central ideas about themselves, their world, and their future. A primary focus of cognitive therapy is to assist clients in examining and restructuring their core beliefs. By motivating and encouraging clients to gather and examining empirical evidences about themselves, therapist can help the client change their mood and behavior. CT would say that Henry has Arbitrary

Cognitive behavioral therapy, on the contrary, utilizes directive consulting tools to control and guide its patients. These include such things as asking questions, interpreting, and providing direction to a client’s attention and emotions. “Aaron Beck developed cognitive therapy, an approach that focuses on recognizing and changing negative thoughts and maladaptive beliefs into more realistic and constructive thoughts and beliefs” (Erford, 2014). It is believed that cognitive behavioral therapy is manipulative in nature. Cognitive behavioral therapy has two main components, these are cognitive therapies and behavioral therapies. Cognitive therapies are concerned with how a client interprets the world around them, such as their environment and the situations with which they are faced with, as well as how these interpretations shape their emotional states and how they respond to them. Basically cognitive therapy focuses on the clients thought processes. It analyzes how the client thinks, why the client thinks a certain way, and strives to changes these patterns in a positive and nurturing way to produce proper emotional states to replace the current maladaptive process that cause disharmony within and for the client. Behavioral therapy is the next step in the counseling process. Its focus is on action instead of thought, and gives the therapist effective tools to assist the client in the production of positive behavioral patterns. This is done by rewarding positive changes in

The patient may also benefit from cognitive therapy because the therapist teaches the patient to be able to recognized life stresses and triggers of depression and replace it with positive thought. This can help to improve the patient’s ability to overcome certain problems that may be a hindrance. This will help the patient to be able to resume normal functioning

Cognitive behavior therapy sessions work on a patients negative thought pattern and turn it into a healthy one that then changes their behavior in a positive way.

Cognitive Behavior Practice Theory new revised model Cognitive Behavior Therapy along with ABC model and automatic thoughts can be applied to Jackie. Numerous studies have been conducted on cognitive behavior theory connecting to symptoms of depression. Jackie struggles with untreated side effects of depression: unexplained fatigue, loss of appetite, and decrease in motivation that stems from her way of thinking. Untreated depression can increase the chances of drug or alcohol usage, ruin relationships, cause problems at work, and can make it extremely difficult to overcome illnesses. Cognitive Behavior therapy is what counselor in social work and psychology believe their clients behaviors and emotions are greatly influenced by their thoughts.

Human beings are born with the motivation to survive (Fall, Holden & Marquis, 2010). This motivation is the framework for how a person processes information in the environment. The perception of a threat depends on the person’s belief that the threat has the ability to hinder survival. Eventually, the motivation to procreate develops and additionally affects a person’s perception of threats. The foundation to which these ideas and cognitive therapy are formed is rooted in three influential approaches. First, the phenomenological approach is based on the personalized view of the individual and the world around him or her (Beck, & Weishaar, 2008). Second, psychology and the organization of “Freud’s concept of…primary and secondary processes”

Cognitive therapy is according to the idea of certain ways of thinking that can fuel or trigger certain mental health problems such as phobias, depression and anxiety. The therapist will help you to understand your current thought patterns to identify any false, unhelpful and harmful attitudes or ideas which you have that makes you feel anxious. The purpose of it is to change your ways of thinking to avoid these attitudes and ideas. In addition, it is also to help your thought patterns to be more helpful and realistic (Lawson,

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy combines two very effective kinds of psychotherapy: Cognitive Therapy, and Behavioral Therapy. Behavior Therapy helps the client to weaken the connections between troublesome situations and their habitual reactions to them. An example of this could be in breaking the addictive cycle present in drug use or dependency. It is helpful in dealing with reactions such as fear, depression, rage, and self-defeating and self-damaging behavior. It also teaches you how to calm your mind and body, so you can feel better, think more clearly, and make better decisions. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy teaches how certain thinking patterns which are causing client symptoms can be mediated and it is helpful in that it gives clients insight as to how that distorted picture of what’s going on in your life makes you feel anxious, depressed or angry for no good reason, or provoking you into ill-chosen actions. When combined into CBT, both Cognitive Therapy and Behavioral Therapy provide social workers and clinicians with very powerful tools for stopping client’s symptoms and helping them to get their lives to get back on track. CBT requires that the client/patient receives a thorough workup at the beginning of treatment, and that the client’s needs and problems have been identified as well as possible. The client must have an explicit,

Cognitive Behavioral therapy is solution focused geared towards solving problems and learning life skills. The goal is to help the client get better in whatever areas of their lives that is needed, and to stay better. Cognitive Behavioral therapy has helped in the treatment of anxiety disorders, depression, personality disorders, and substance abuse to name a few. It has also helped in mental disorder such as bipolar and schizophrenia. This approach has been used in children, families, and couples (National Association of Cognitive Behavioral Therapist,