According to the cognitive behavioral approach, the way people perceive situations determines their reactions (feelings and behaviors) more than the reality of the actual situations does. It is often when people engage in rigid thinking patterns such as all-or-nothing thinking, minimizing positives and magnifying negatives, and jumping to conclusions that they begin to feel afraid, angry, depressed, helpless or incompetent. These feelings in turn will affect their actions and behaviors.
By using the CBT approach we will first help you identify how you think about your current problems and determine whether these thoughts are realistic. If these thoughts are deemed unrealistic, you will learn to challenge and reframe them. Between the sessions you will be given “homework” to practice in your day-to-day life the strategies you have been introduced to in sessions. CBT is an action-oriented approach that focuses on problem-solving present-time issues.