CBT

[sandybanana]

Hi all,

I am due to start CBT soon. I am
extremely anxious about it. I have severe anxiety, diagnosed OCD and Emetephobia.

I am petrified as I have huge trust issues and am not sure I can even go ahead with it.

Has anyone had it? What does it entail and
when I had my telephone assessment they said I will probably need high intensity therapy. What's the difference?

I am so worried.

Please can anyone reassure me,

Started CBT . It was a course of around 12 weeks. 45min session once a week. ( Often can be in groups) Looked at anxiety, why we react as we do , fight and flight, the anxiety loop and coping mechanism.
High intensity can carry on from this if needs be.Its with a more experienced therapist who looks at your issues more closely and helps you devise a plan of action around situations and it's more ' you' focused. My high intensity therapist was also trained in EMDR and she was experienced in dealing with people with PTSD.

High intensity therapy sessions we're an hour long in my experience and I had one weekly for a further 12 weeks ( this can be extended a little I believe). I also believe you can have more than one a week

I've had CBT a few times and have found it really helpful, both with anxiety and my phobia. In your first session you'll meet your therapist and talk about what you struggle with and what you might like to change. Often, you are asked how you feel (emotions and physically) in different situations, what you do, and what you are thinking and why. There will probably be homework involving doing something new, that you agree you could try to do.

It's likely that the first couple of sessions will be about you and the therapist building a shared understanding of a) the difficulties you are experiencing and b) what CBT is. If the therapist says something you don't understand, tell them you don't understand. They should have a wide range of strategies for talking about different ideas. Ask questions.

Low intensity - could be group classes, could 1-1. If 1-1, likely to be 30 minute sessions once a week for 6 weeks. Could also be done over the phone or online as well as face to face.

High intensity - usually 1-1. Typically 60 minute sessions, up to 16-20 of them. Usually face to face. Might be more than once a week if that suits you and therapist.

The most significant factor in whether a therapy is effective is how good the relationship is between client and therapist. If you don't like the therapist, for whatever reason, it is ok to ask to see someone else. There might be a wait for this, as obviously you'll need a vacant slot in another therapist's schedule, but it could be well worth it.

Also, we tend to see the best results when people are on both meds and talking therapy at the same time. Of course they're not always right for everyone but if you haven't considered meds I would strongly suggest looking into it.

I cried in every cbt session, but that was because someone was being nice to me and understanding my situation.
It's about exploring your responses to situations, recognising whether that response is appropriate or if your mind has trained you into negative reactions which aren't a true reflection of what's happening.
I had 'homework' which I found difficult. Things like arranging to chat informally with my boss about my work to find out if there was any validity to my feelings of imposter syndrome (there wasn't, he was perfectly happy with how I was handling my job).
I did a questionnaire at the beginning which showed quite severe depression.
At the end of the sessions (10-12 ?) I repeated the questionnaire and got much improved results as my perceptions about things had changed even though the situation triggering my depression hadn't

Be brave and give it a go.

Thank you all for your responses and support.
I am very worried but realise to get better, I have to give it a go.
I really appreciate you replying to
my message- thank you.