Substance abuse and addiction change the way you think, feel, and behave. Over time, negative thought processes and impulsive behaviors become embedded in your personality. However, an important part of getting sober is learning how to change your thought processes and engage in healthier behaviors while getting rid of the toxic habits that supported your addiction so you can embrace a sober lifestyle.
While there are many therapies used in addiction treatment to invoke behavioral change, one of the most popular is cognitive-behavioral therapy or CBT.
What is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)?
Cognitive-behavioral therapy often referred to as CBT, is a type of psychotherapy that is used to treat a variety of mental health issues and substance use disorders. It is a type of talk therapy that emphasizes the importance of changing negative thought patterns to promote healthier behaviors. It also focuses on teaching you how to implement healthy coping skills into your daily life.
CBT sessions are facilitated by a licensed counselor and can be held on a group or individual basis. At Arise Treatment Center, our CBT therapists will help you take control of your thoughts, develop healthier ways to think about situations and the world around you and learn healthy coping strategies that promote positive behavioral change. This solutions-focused therapy centers less on things that happened in the past and more on what is happening in the present moment and how you can appropriately handle current situations.
The primary goal of CBT is to develop an awareness of harmful thinking patterns that are contributing to the problems in your life, re-evaluate your inner thoughts, and adjust your behaviors in a positive way. This can help increase your problem-solving skills, boost your self-confidence, and enable you to manage stressful situations appropriately.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Techniques Used in Addiction Treatment
Cognitive-behavioral therapists use a variety of different exercises and techniques to help clients achieve sobriety. These include:
- Behavioral experiments – Exercises that compare and contrast negative and positive thoughts to see which thoughts are more successful in invoking behavioral changes.
- Thought records – Work with your therapist to analyze your negative thoughts, look for evidence to either support or disprove those thoughts, and shift your perspective back to reality.
- Problem-solving – Identify coping strategies that can be used to deal with negative thoughts, behaviors, or substance abuse.
- Behavioral activation – Work with your therapist to pinpoint activities that you used to enjoy and re-introduce those activities into your life with the goal of improving your behavioral patterns.
- Imagery-based exposure – Your therapist asks you to recall a memory that provokes negative feelings so you can reduce the anxiety or stress that those memories cause you.
In addition to discussing thoughts and behaviors with your therapist, your therapist may also give you homework exercises or activities to see if the techniques you are discussing are working for you.
The Benefits of CBT in Addiction Treatment
One of the best things about using cognitive behavioral therapy in addiction treatment is that it is extremely dynamic and adaptable. Every approach used in CBT can be custom-tailored to match your unique needs. By providing highly-focused care, CBT can:
- Help you dismiss false or negative beliefs about yourself, your past, and your capabilities
- Encourage you to overcome insecurities about your substance abuse
- Provide you with self-help tools
- Promote healthy, effective communication
- Improve your ability to navigate personal relationships
- Prevent drug and alcohol relapse by changing thoughts and behaviors
- Help you cope with drug and alcohol triggers
- Introduce healthy habits into your daily life
- Make you more aware of your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors
CBT is also an extremely engaging, hands-on approach to healing. This allows you to regain a sense of control over your treatment regimen, your recovery, and your life as a whole. By working closely with a therapist to identify and change destructive thoughts can promote healthy behaviors, which, in turn, can prevent a relapse on drugs and alcohol.
Start Your Recovery at Arise Treatment Center Today
Overcoming addiction involves making a lot of drastic changes in your life, but CBT can enable you to do so effectively. Our team of dedicated therapists and counselors are here for you every step of your recovery journey–to help you cope with painful emotions, develop healthy coping skills, and prevent relapse in the months and years to come. Your struggle is our struggle, and we’re happy to be by your side.
Don’t wait any longer to get the life-changing addiction treatment you deserve. Call now to speak with an admissions specialist.
