CBT for Depression Treatment

Those looking at options for depression treatment in Kolkata almost always prefer counselling or psychotherapy to medications. However, given that there are so many different types of therapy options, the client is often confused. Today’s article is a brief overview of the most widely used therapy for depression treatment in Kolkata, namely Cognitive Behavioral Therapy or CBT.



Before we start, a few basics. In cases of severe depression, psychotherapy or counselling as a standalone treatment is rarely helpful. Medications are essential to prevent the patient from going rapidly downhill. A point to note here. Counselling and psychotherapy are not synonymous. Although the general notion is that both are “talk therapies”, psychotherapy is a structured, evidence based, scientific treatment approach that can only be administered by a skilled psychiatrist or clinical psychologist. In a word, it is more than just sitting and talking to the client.

 The principle behind Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is simple. Our thoughts, emotions and actions are inter-dependent. That is to say, if you think negatively (thought) in a given situation, you are bound to get sad or anxious (emotion) and as a result try to avoid the situation or give up in despair (action/behavior). Let me give you an example. If you look at a landscape wearing a pair of dark glasses, everything would appear dark and dreary. If you are wearing a rose tinted pair of glasses, the landscape takes on a rosy hue. Just change the filter of your thoughts and emotions, and the way you perceive the world changes. However, this is easier said than done.



In CBT, clients are taught how to identify thoughts that are negative and anxiety provoking. The process of identification takes some time to master. This is because thoughts are automatic. Most of the time we are already in the middle of the thought process even before we realize we have been thinking about it. For a depressed person, in any given situation, the thought that comes to mind is almost always a negative one. The accompanying mood would naturally be sad.

Once the person learns how to identify his/her negative automatic thoughts, the next step is to replace it with a more rational positive thought. For example, after a messy presentation at work, the person might think that he/she is completely worthless and incapable of coming up with a good presentation ever. That is a negative automatic thought. The person is asked to write it down along with his explanation for thinking that way. He is then asked to write down from memory a few good past performances at work. After this exercise, the person automatically begins to see the irrationality of considering himself/herself a total failure. The psychiatrist repeats the same process with all sorts of negative thoughts the person has. As the pattern of thinking changes from negative to positive, the person begins to think more rationally. His/her confidence improves and the mood brightens. Consequently, maladaptive behavior patterns like crying inconsolably, avoiding work or socialization improve.

 If you are seeking treatment for depression in Kolkata, CBT is a good mode of therapy, provided both the client and the psychiatrist agree upon it.

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