Cognitive Behavior Therapy, or CBT, is a form of psychotherapy that has been shown to be effective in helping people recover from addiction. In CBT, patients learn how to change their unhelpful thoughts and behaviors that may be contributing to their addiction. This therapy can help people to break free from their addictive patterns and manage their cravings effectively. Let’s take a closer look at what this type of therapy is all about and how it can help with addiction recovery.
1. What Is Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT)?
Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) is a type of psychotherapy that can help modify a person’s thinking patterns and the way they react to certain situations. CBT is typically used as a treatment for mood disorders, such as depression and anxiety.
There are several types of CBT: exposure therapy, stress inoculation training, cognitive processing therapy, and dialect speech therapy. But for this article, we will focus only on the cognitive aspect of CBT, which helps to identify and change patterns of thinking.
Cognitive behavior therapy is a type of therapy that focuses on changing negative thoughts and behaviors. The term cognitive refers to thinking or thoughts, while behavior indicates actions. Cognitive-behavior therapists seek to understand how an individual’s thoughts impact their feelings and behaviors, which then impacts their overall well-being.
2. CBT for Addiction Recovery
People who struggle with addiction often have issues managing their emotions, which may occur as a result of years spent using drugs or alcohol as a coping mechanism/escape from reality. CBT helps people learn how to identify those thoughts and change them. This allows individuals to deal with things in an alternative, healthier manner.
Cognitive behavior therapy has actually been shown to be an effective way to deal with addiction recovery. While treating addiction can seem like a very physical process (i.e detoxification, identifying withdrawal symptoms, using medication, etc.) but actually a major part of the Outpatient Rehab program involves cognitive behavior therapy, as it can help individuals to repair their previous self-destructing patterns.
3. Using Cognitive Behavior Therapy To Prevent Relapse
An example of this in the context of addiction recovery would be that an addict who has a strong belief that people in his/her family are going to reject them once they learn about their addiction, this negative thought will then produce a feeling of strong emotions such as pain and anger. As a reaction to these emotions, the person may choose to engage in certain behaviors like resorting back to using drugs or alcohol.
That is why cognitive-behavior therapy helps individuals cope up with negative feelings and situations by training them on how to respond differently through various exercises. In addition, it is important for individuals recovering from any mental health disorder, especially addictions to recognize the warning signs of relapse early on so they can take action before it becomes too late.
Cognitive behavior therapists can teach someone trying to quit drugs about how they can control the impulse to consume or overcome any triggers that might lead them to relapse.
For example, an addict will be able to understand how their negative thoughts and stressful situations can trigger a relapse. In addition, it teaches addicts the art of mindfulness which is the ability to pay attention to the present moment without letting emotions get in the way that can lead them back into addiction.
4. Finding A Therapist Who Specializes In CBT For Addiction Recovery
The best way to find out is by asking them what kind of approach they use when dealing with people with addictions. One good thing about cognitive behavior therapists is that they do not push drugs or any other type of medication like psychologists would do, instead, they provide practical solutions on how you can change your ways especially when it comes to stopping drug abuse.
5. Getting Started With Cognitive Behavior Therapy For Addiction Recovery?
The first step is to share with them your addiction problem and tell them the details of what you did. If you are not ready yet to do that then it would be better if you can come up with a plan on how to get started when they ask you about it later on.
Next, you need to tell the therapist about yourself so he or she would know why you are suffering from certain addictions in the past. They will advise you on what behavior changes need to be done in order for one to improve his or her addiction recovery process.
You may also take some tests that can help determine your level of success when facing certain kinds of addictions in the future especially when it comes to smoking cigarettes and drinking alcohol which is very common.
If you are in recovery and looking for a way to boost your chances of success, CBT may be the right choice for you.