Comments on: How Effective is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for Anxiety?

By: Effective Psychology

Effective Psychology — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 18:04:12 +0000

Hello,

my name is Stefan. I work as an integrative psychologist in Ireland. Can you kindly let me have a copy of the article written by yourself as mentioned in your comment (about overcoming fear etc.)

Thank you

Stefan

By: joe clarke

joe clarke — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 11:44:03 +0000

i was shot with a shot gun 4 years ago by my ex partners friends but police messed up my case and all five men walked free. i have tried every therapy and been told there is no cure to help me as the men are still walking around free. i am being told that this therapy might work but i am not sure what do you think.. my life is ruined now lost my job on oil rig and depression is all i feel now…

By: Alex

Alex — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 20:14:28 +0000

Great…so they didn’t do much research till now. I guess it is that way, since medication brings more money and is easier and cheaper because it doesn’t require the training of professionals.
CBT has the problem of taking too much and anxiety sufferers doubt anything that doesn’t bring fast results. However, if the therapist keeps the patient motivated enough time for CBT to take effect, it should work.

By: Ryan Norwood

Ryan Norwood — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 22:01:17 +0000

I’m surprised to read in your article that to date there has been no systematic review of the efficacy of CBT. I was suffering from panic and social anxiety for a good number of years. Though I did not know it was CBT, at the time I was practicing it with a therapist, my anxieties gradually went away, i can attribute a part of it through some cbt exercises and a good amount of exposure to some of my fears. Though a lot of other factors can be attributed to my reduced anxiety as well. I agree that is it not a cure-all but has its merits.

By: John Threadgold

John Threadgold — Sun, 30 May 2010 15:24:20 +0000

In the UK the goverment have pumped millions of pounds into CBT. I have had a steady stream of clients coming into my private practise, having found that CBT has at best provided them with techniques that supress their problems, and others for for whom CBT has made things worse. My own appraoch is that of Focusing oriented therapy. Example, I encouraged one client to notice where in his body he feels the pancity feelings, to imagine keeping them company ( like you would a panicy child), and treat them with gentle curiosity. After a few sessions his panic attaks were reduced, and then vanished. No attempt was made to change his thinking, or surpress or reframe this feelings. Focussing succeded where CBT had failed. Maybe I just get the people for whom CBT is not appropraite ? My view is that CBT is flawed in its concentration on so called distorted thinking. Its best to go straight to the experiential roots of that thinking and process them. That way real and deep seated healing takes place.

By: babak

babak — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 13:41:42 +0000

i,m a psychologist and i applyed this techniques in some of disorders like these(anxiety diseases/affectives problems/behavioral/and personalities disease and combined with the psychoanalytical techniques and every day i,ve trying proven them,really this techniques is very effective,by the i,m not a professional and i need to your guide in this field.thank you.

By: joan

joan — Fri, 22 May 2009 04:39:31 +0000

I was on xanax 1mg daily. I had tried diff. cbt techniques on my own, but I was never sure if I was doing it right. Maybe it was my anxiety kicking in, lol…Finally I saw a therapist. She was cool and she helped a lot. I still take xanax every now and again, but never daily. A one month supply now lasts me for about 3 or 4 mos. Overall, I would def. say cbt works. The therapist I saw was at http://www.houstoncounselor.me. If you are in Houston and need therapy, I highly reccommend her.

By: Betty L.

Betty L. — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 14:48:59 +0000

I tried CBT this summer for panic attacks and I was panic attack free after just 12 sessions! In the past I had tried psychoanalysis, medication and “behavioral therapy” (i use quotes because this person was more of a life coach, she helped me organize my life, but did next to nothing to directly address my anxiety), nothing helped me like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. It was really amazing. I only wish I could have done it sooner in life. However, like anything else, I think it’s important to find a good, well-trained cognitive behavioral therapist. I had tried cbt books on my own, but it wasn’t the same as going to talk to a cognitive behavioral therapist in person. What’s more, I went to a reserach center where they only practice cbt and have the latest research on anxiety disorders.

By: Carol H

Carol H — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 22:10:19 +0000

I’ve been the cognitive-behavioural therapy (Beck System) and it worked some of the time, but not all of the time. I was given worksheets but hit a brick wall. There were approximately six/seven different columns and I could never get past the one where it said, to write down a reason why I shouldn’t react. At the time, I was going through major emotional and psychological hell with my late IL. She couldn’t stand me and basically controlled my spouse and me and she was the reason I decided to get involved with counselling with my former doctor who left her GP practice to become a psychotherapist.
Where I live, there aren’t any psychologists or psychiatrists.
I do a lot of internet self-help research and have created a binder of ideas of how to get along with people, among multiple other suggestions and ideas.
I’ve been through multiple anti-depressant medications as well as Ativan for anxiety which on the rare occasion, I find it necessary to take.

By: kim_johnson

kim_johnson — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 15:46:12 +0000

While one persons experience is interesting when one is attempting to provide the treatment that is most effective for a certain RANGE of people then ones personal experience is only one among many.

Similarly, when one is delivering a certain variety of therapy when one is attempting to assess the efficacy of different varieties of treatment it is important to note that ones own variety of therapy is only one among many.

So… It is nice that studies are being done. While a particular individual might say ‘I know that was what was true for me all along’ and while a theorist of a certain theoretical orientation might say ‘that is what I’ve clinically observed all along’ such things as confirmation bias mean that control trials trump anecdotal reports. The evidence really could have gone either way, you see…

By: kim_johnson

kim_johnson — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 15:41:36 +0000

Was the QPASSLive.com assessment tool the tool that was used to screen for whether people had anxiety / depression in the study that was conducted here? If not then… Er… How is it relevant?

Hell, I’ll give you a diagnosis if you mail me 40 bucks

By: Running in Place to Conquer Your Anxiety? - World of Psychology

Running in Place to Conquer Your Anxiety? - World of Psychology — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 00:18:31 +0000

[...] In this blog post a few days ago, John mentioned an April 2008 literature review by researchers at Boston University who wanted to explore the efficacy of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) in treating anxiety. The authors of the review concluded that CBT, a short-term treatment technique, is generally effective for anxiety orders. [...]

By: joni L.

joni L. — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 02:30:04 +0000

How great to see a confirmation of something we have witnessed in counseling offices for years. But before counseling for anxiety, a therapist needs to establish a diagnosis.

Check out QPASSLive.com for a new assessment tool that measures anxiety, anger and depression in one test in about 10 minutes for only $.69 per use. Psychometrics and more information is all there.

By: Dragos

Dragos — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 23:44:13 +0000

Was the comorbidity of depression and anxiety disorders taken into account? It might the case that CBT only works for anxiety when it co-occurs with depression..

By: Wendy Aron

Wendy Aron — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 20:50:42 +0000

I am living proof that CBT works. I have been with the same cognitive behavioral therapist for over ten years and my depression/anxiety has abated. In fact, I have not had any hospitalizations since seeing her. Of course, I am also on medication, which is another part of the puzzle. But I can say that without a doubt, the therapy is an equally important component of my treatment.

Wendy Aron, author of Hide & Seek: How I Laughed at Depression, Conquered My Fears and Found Happiness