Highland Park Psychologist

Cognitive Behavioral TherapyHighland Park, IL

With mental health issues, therapy is much more than merely exploring past childhood traumas. With a variety of forms of therapy, patients can receive the customized care they need to cope with their mental health issues. Cognitive behavioral therapy involves using therapy to identify dysfunctions, emotions and behaviors before finding effective solutions to encourage positive changes to one’s condition.

Cognitive behavioral therapy is offered at Center for Emotional Peace in Highland Park and surrounding areas. Cognitive behavioral therapy, CBT, helps patients use problem-solving techniques and avoid destructive patterns of behavior. While people may believe the various stereotypes of mental health treatment, the reality is that many people can receive treatment without needing to stay in a facility or completely change their lives.

If you are interested in therapy or are struggling with a mental health issue, call us and begin the path toward healing.

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Understanding CBT

While each mental illness can have its own set of symptoms and health issues, CBT can help provide relief to patients struggling with multiple conditions. That being said, we will need to examine each patient in order to determine if CBT or another form of therapy will be effective with treatment. Benefits of CBT can include:

  • Helping prevent a relapse or episode
  • Identifying effective ways to manage emotions and avoid negative behaviors
  • Managing symptoms of a mental illness
  • Helping the patient cope with grief or loss
  • Facing and finding ways to beat the emotional trauma from abuse
  • Helping to find balance with medication and other treatment options
  • Learning how to cope with stressful situations
  • In many cases, people who only rely on medication for treatment find that it is not enough. Even though medication can be effective, therapy and other treatment techniques are usually necessary to do more than merely manage symptoms. With CBT, we can help the patient set up healthy techniques and plans for situations that trigger symptoms of mental illness.

    Focusing on the entire person

    People may believe in common misconceptions of therapy, including that it involves a script of questions that professionals look up online. While CBT has a structure, it is about building a positive relationship and rapport between us and the patient to promote healing. We understand the past can hold traumatic events that can play a role in causing the mental illness, but that is not our only focus.

    We will use CBT to identify past experiences and work with the patient after identifying this past trauma to begin healing. CBT can help treat a variety of conditions, a few of which include:

  • Anxiety
  • PTSD
  • Depression
  • Substance abuse
  • OCD
  • To begin the treatment process, we will need to know more about the patient’s medical history, current condition, insurance and more. With this information, we will be able to help customize the treatment to the patient’s needs.

    The CBT process

    At Center for Emotional Peace, we will take the time to learn more about the patient’s condition and their lifestyle. By learning how mental illness impacts their daily routine, we can help them build healthier coping techniques to work around the symptoms. We will strive to help the patient maintain a goal-orientated approach that promotes healing.

    With our approach, we will work with the patient to customize the therapy, by reviewing:

  • The number of sessions to what the patient needs
  • The severity of the symptoms
  • The length of time the patient has had the condition
  • The type of stress and problems the patient faces each day
  • The speed of the patient’s progress
  • The type of support the patient has at home
  • Since CBT is considered short-term therapy, we may recommend treatment for as few as five sessions to as many as 20. We will speak with the patient and determine the number they think will help them. We will then help the patient begin to become aware of their thoughts, emotions and overall beliefs about the issues they struggle with.

    With this treatment, we can also help to reshape negative thinking and behavior that would otherwise further their condition. The patient may also complete activities, homework assignments or tasks that help the patient work through these issues. The level of participation from the patient can also impact the number of sessions.

    Call us today

    If you are in need of treatment or are interested in learning more about how CBT can help you, call us and schedule a session today. There is no reason to continue struggling alone. We will help you begin the path to recovery and healing.

    Contact Us

    Center for Emotional Peace is located at
    210 Skokie Valley Rd Suite C
    Highland Park, IL
    60035

    (847) 722-6118