# Did you find CBT beneficial?



## Banzai (Jun 4, 2009)

I'm not sure if CBT is actually not very effective or the comments about CBT being useless just happened to be voiced more.


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## FerociousFleur (Oct 30, 2012)

People seem to voice their opinion more when they're unhappy about something. My guess is that those who are happily being treated with CBT aren't motivated to talk about it online, and might be less likely to visit social anxiety forums.

CBT was very effective for me, although it took time for me to change myself. I started going to therapy in 9th grade, and it wasn't until I graduated from college that I really had control of my anxiety.

Also, I started CBT without medication, and once I started taking Lexapro years later, it was like night and day. I still focus on having positive thoughts/mindset like my CBT therapist taught me, but I don't know what I'd do without meds!


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## Ltsax (May 28, 2012)

FerociousFleur said:


> People seem to voice their opinion more when they're unhappy about something. My guess is that those who are happily being treated with CBT aren't motivated to talk about it online, and might be less likely to visit social anxiety forums.
> 
> CBT was very effective for me, although it took time for me to change myself. I started going to therapy in 9th grade, and it wasn't until I graduated from college that I really had control of my anxiety.
> 
> Also, I started CBT without medication, and once I started taking Lexapro years later, it was like night and day. I still focus on having positive thoughts/mindset like my CBT therapist taught me, but I don't know what I'd do without meds!


Not to play devil's advocate, but how do you know that your changes in mental state aren't solely due to the medication. If you did CBT so long without any results and got results as soon as you took meds, whose to say it wasn't just the meds.


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## FerociousFleur (Oct 30, 2012)

Ltsax said:


> Not to play devil's advocate, but how do you know that your changes in mental state aren't solely due to the medication. If you did CBT so long without any results and got results as soon as you took meds, whose to say it wasn't just the meds.


There are a couple reasons. First, I noticed changes in my mindset after being in CBT... I used to be the most self-loathing person, and I was very hard on myself for all the things I thought I did wrong everyday. I also tended to overanalyze social interactions I'd had with people, and would think that people hated me or never wanted me around. My first therapist made me realize I was completely overreacting every day, and I eventually was able to change my thought processes.

So after CBT, I was a much more positive person, but I still had horrible social anxiety. Taking antidepressants helped me more with the physical issues of being anxious. They stopped me from having panic attack, which really inhibited my ability to interact with people, and made me able to physically talk slower and not get that rush of panic/anxiety when i was worried about having to talk to people.

For me, I really needed both. I don't think I'd be a very happy person if I was on medication and still had the same negative, overly analytical thoughts swimming around my brain.


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## shammie (Oct 31, 2012)

For a specific part of my SA (specifically massive difficulties in crowded city areas) the CBT was very useful. Over a period of weeks, we conducted small-scale experiments to challenge my false beliefs. 

If I walk around in a city, I feel people are looking at me, judging me, ready to laugh. Do people laugh at other people, generally, in a city? Go and have a look. Sit and watch people go past - do they point and laugh at anyone else? Or are they too busy getting on with the shopping, and trying to get home? 

Little things like that slip into your head and help to deal with the negative nagging thoughts that used to be there. When you're feeling uneasy in the situation, just challenge yourself in your head - realize you're blowing something up - and poof - gone. Or at least easier. 

My problem with CBT was that it dealt with 'specific' parts of my problem. In many ways it's now down to me to formulate these same style tactics for dealing with the rest of my life - but like so many things, when it's just you on your own again, it becomes a lot more difficult. 

The medication helps to make life easier in the short run. The CBT helped in the longer run. But it really just chipped a corner off my overall SA problem, proving to me that the panic attacks in public were just a single facet of my SA.


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## ReleaseMe (Nov 6, 2012)

I had CBT for a few months and from my experience, it did help to a certain degree. It was good for me to see on a piece of paper in front of me, the reasons (or the circle) that keeps me locked in feeling this way. I made connections with the help of my therapist for all my different problems, and started to understand how they were connected and most importantly where to start to try and help myself. It was good to see, in every session, that I could understand not only myself more, but the reasons as to why I am the way I am. So from an understanding point of view I found it helpful, and when I got over my initial reserved stance, I found I could open up and talk about my problems more then what I ever thought I could do.

Now, understanding myself better is one thing... but to actually put into practice some of the things he told me to do, in my mind, was just not possible. For example, my sessions were every week and my therapist would set me a goal that he would like me to achieve, and some of these would just be obviously too hard for me, such as go out to the pub with my friends (who I hadn't seen in years) or to go places on my own (I've struggled with both) and sometimes I felt I wasn't as advanced as he wanted me to be. I generally have to take things slowly or I find myself resisting them more, sometimes it felt a little too rushed. Obviously this depends on your therapist as each one will have an individual approach. Hope this helps a little, if it makes sense.


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## Reem majors (Oct 27, 2012)

*cbt benificial*

Theres different styles of cbt which all have the same principles.My social anxiety is pretty serious but improving due to cbt.Ive had worksheets and they deffinetly help but for me the auto neg thoughts was so quick and many that it was unrealistic and I would feel inadequate ,because in order to know it was unrealistic it involved healing which wasnt a reality at that time or from the cog.behavoral therapy worksheets.The worksheets brought relief but real healing didnt start really taking place until getting on a very knowledgable well laid out stratigic cog/behavoral therapy program from a institute ran by a doctor that had the condition.this program really covers all bases and gets the ball rolling.Its a institute in phenix arizona and a audio series step by step following that information it wont be hard to find.they have the book without the audio series on pinkhog.com under social anxiety which could be very helpful.Its free;the onlyb thing is the audio series walks you through what to read and when and also really is the full package.If any one has the money I can tell you by experience its worth it and you'll see results in your life in extraordinary fasion.If any one wants the benifits of the program but wants the free version because of finances just be careful to follow the audio series as shown on the website in phenox arizona because you can see whats covered in each cd per cd# per week.If its not followed each week the way the audio series leads it can overload the brain and cause problems.But even if someone needs it now and decide to start free I would still say as soon as possible to consider getting the audioseries because thats the full effects and I can say by experiance it will change your life because it changed and still is changing mine.Have a blessed recovery every body...


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## Reem majors (Oct 27, 2012)

Reem majors said:


> Theres different styles of cbt which all have the same principles.My social anxiety is pretty serious but improving due to cbt.Ive had worksheets and they definetly help but for me the auto neg thoughts was so quick and many that it was unrealistic and I would feel inadequate ,because in order to know it was unrealistic it involved healing which wasnt a reality at that time or from the cog.behavoral therapy worksheets.The worksheets brought relief but real healing didnt start really taking place until getting on a very knowledgable well laid out stratigic cog/behavoral therapy program from a institute ran by a doctor that had the condition.this program really covers all bases and gets the ball rolling.Its a institute in phenix arizona and a audio series step by step( following that information it wont be hard to find).they have the book without the audio series on pinkhog.com under social anxiety which could be very helpful.Its free;the onlyb thing is the audio series walks you through what to read and when and also really is the full package.If any one has the money I can tell you by experience its worth it and you'll see results in your life in extraordinary fasion.If any one wants the benifits of the program but wants the free version because of finances just be careful to follow the audio series as shown on the website in phenox arizona because you can see whats covered in each cd per cd# per week.If its not followed each week the way the audio series leads it can overload the brain and cause problems.But even if someone needs it now and decide to start free I would still say as soon as possible to consider getting the audioseries because thats the full effects and I can say by experiance it will change your life because it changed and still is changing mine.Have a blessed recovery every body...


 Please Pklease whatever anybody do please read up on why psycodynamic therapy is the worst for SA.I found out the hard way.Please dont do it...PLEASE


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## low (Sep 27, 2009)

I like some of the theory. I tried so hard to buy in to it. It simply did not work very much for me. You have to really buy in to it in my experience. I'm too realist.


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## dinosawr (Aug 18, 2012)

CBT is something where you get out of it exactly what you put into it. It is a conscious, concerted and long-term regiment into healing your ailment, and it takes a _lot_ of work to reap major rewards. For someone with severe social anxiety, it can be a path just as long, difficult and grueling as preparing to run a marathon.

The problem is, the majority of people don't have that kind of dedication, and CBT takes time to work; it's not a quick fix. So someone will halfheartedly try it for a couple weeks, not take it seriously, and make very little if any progress as a result. And then they'll blame the treatment for not working, when they were really just unwilling to put the effort into it. That's my theory.


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