What If You Didn't Believe Every Thought You Had?

Today I want to introduce another approach that has helped millions of people around the world: Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, or CBT.

It has one of the strongest evidence bases in psychological research, in part because its structured approach makes it easier to study and it has received more research investment than any other psychotherapy. That does not mean it is the best therapy for everyone. Different therapies suit different people and different difficulties.

CBT was developed by the American psychiatrist Dr Aaron Beck in the 1960s. Beck noticed that many of his depressed patients shared similar patterns of negative thinking and wondered whether changing those patterns could change how they felt. His work transformed psychotherapy and gave rise to one of the most widely researched treatments in mental health.

Beck built on earlier discoveries in psychology. One of those pioneers was the Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov, whose famous experiments showed how our brains learn through association. His work laid the foundations for behavioural psychology. CBT brought those behavioural principles together with a new understanding of how our thoughts shape our emotions and our behaviour.

Today, CBT is most commonly used to treat anxiety, depression, panic attacks, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), phobias, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), eating disorders, insomnia, addiction and chronic pain. It can also help people manage long-term physical health conditions where thoughts, emotions and behaviour influence symptoms.