Ok first session of CBT today , what should i expect?

[frumpet]

Going in with an open mind , but never had any kind of counselling before .

Good luck!
When I had my first session they mostly explained to me what cbt was about and how the sessions would work. CBT mostly involves trying to change negative patterns of thinking. There's often written work to do between sessions at home so you are constantly trying to put the tips into practise.

I found it really effective for me - hope you get off to a good start with it.

How did it go??

Hope your CBT went well today. I have just been signed off by my therapist after 8 months of sessions. I found it really helpful, but it is a lot to do with how much you put in too.

Hope it's successful for you OP!

I await my first ever CBT session after Easter and I am nervous too!

I have had person centred counselling in the past but never CBT it sounded a bit hardcore to me but trying to have an open mind!

I think what separates CBT from other therapies (and counselling) is that you have to put a lot more work in yourself. You will gain a lot of insight into your own behaviour and how to change it. You may get 'homework' which can be difficult if you aren't supported. It is plausible you will feel worse before feeling better, but it is worth pushing through it because you need to deal with the problems. Do you have support at home in case you need to talk between sessions? If not there's always us :)

A good therapist will do this only a tiny bit at a time. Mine described it as having all the bad stuff in a box in my head - the box is locked because you try and hide it all. You only open the box a little to get one 'thing' out and deal with that before getting out anything else. You won't just open it all and get it all out at once.

I hope you're ok.