5 Effective CBT Techniques to Start Now
- cbtbournemouth
- 4 days ago
- 2 min read
Are you looking to unlock happiness, wellbeing, confidence and to improve your mental health? Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) could support you to achive your welbbeing goals. Rebecca Cox, a highly skilled Cognitive Behavioural Therapist with extensive experience in treating Anxiety Disorders and Depression, is here to guide you on your journey to wellbeing.
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is recognized as an effective therapeutic approach for managing anxiety, depression, and stress-related challenges. The encouraging aspect? You can start benefiting from CBT techniques even before your first session.
Rebecca assists adults in transforming their relationship with unhelpful thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. Here are 5 CBT techniques you can begin using today to establish new habits:
1. Thought Records – Identify and Challenge Negative Automatic Thoughts
A fundamental principle of CBT is that our thoughts influence our emotions and actions. During periods of anxiety or depression, negative automatic thoughts and assumptions often remain unchallenged and may seem entirely true. Initiating a habit of maintaining a thought record can help you slow down your thinking process, recognize your thoughts, understand their impact on your emotions and behaviors, and enhance your awareness of specific difficulties.
How to implement:
Develop a habit of daily reflection on your thoughts.
Document your feelings each day.
Note what has been on your mind.
Consider using a journal or CBT app to incorporate this habit into your daily routine.
2. Modify Your Behavior
Depression often results in withdrawal and avoidance, creating a sense of entrapment and defeat, which can further exacerbate low mood. Behavioural Activation encourages the reintroduction of meaningful, enjoyable, or routine activities, even when motivation is lacking.
Begin with:
Creating a list of activities you currently enjoy or previously found enjoyable
Incorporating one activity per week as a new habit
Monitoring your mood before and after the activity
Action often precedes motivation, not the reverse.
3. The 5-4-3-2-1 Grounding Technique
When anxiety manifests, particularly through panic or racing thoughts, grounding techniques can help refocus attention on the present moment.
Engage in this simple sensory exercise:
Identify 5 things you can see
Identify 4 things you can feel
Identify 3 things you can hear
Identify 2 things you can smell
Identify 1 thing you can taste
This technique can help soothe the nervous system and diminish feelings of overwhelm.
4. SMART Goals – Prepare for Success
CBT emphasizes goal orientation and active participation. Setting SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) can foster confidence and momentum.
For example: Rather than saying, “I want to feel better,” specify, “I will take a 10-minute walk after lunch three times this week.”
Begin with small steps and build on successes—every step is significant.
5. Thought Defusion – Disengage from Unhelpful Thoughts
At times, disputing every negative thought may feel counterproductive. CBT introduces thought defusion, a technique from mindfulness-based CBT that aids in perceiving thoughts as mental events rather than facts.
Practice this: When aware of an unhelpful or negative thought, remind yourself:
“I’m noticing the thought that…”
This can create distance between you and the thought, which can reduce its power.
Your thoughts do not define you, and not everything you think is completely true.
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