System Theory

Essay by JodiSilva21University, Bachelor'sA, May 2008

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Cognitive Behavior Therapy has many different approaches to dealing with people who are experiencing Cognitive Behavior. Explained in further detail will be discussed some of the therapies and why they are effective along with curtain approaches a therapist may use when dealing with a client. Also explained in more detail will be the purpose of Cognitive Therapy and how it works.

ApproachCognitive behavior occurs when a person is thinking irrational about themselves. When their thoughts and feelings are causing them to see themselves as less to the point where they would want to hurt themselves. When our brains are healthy, it is our thinking that causes us to feel and act the way we do. Therefore, if we are experiencing unwanted feelings and behavior, it is important to know what thoughts are causing the feelings that we are experiencing.

There are several approaches to cognitive-behavioral therapy, including Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy, Motivational Interviewing Therapy, Reality Therapy, Cognitive Therapy, and many more.

But they all have the same in common. All Cognitive-behavioral therapy is based on the scientific fact that our thoughts cause our feelings and behaviors. Some forms of therapy assume that the main reason people get better in therapy is because of the positive relationship between the therapist and client.

Cognitive-behavioral therapists seek to learn what their clients want out of life to be able to help their clients achieve those goals. Cognitive-behavioral therapy does not tell people how they should feel. Cognitive-behavioral therapists want to gain a very good understanding of their clients' concerns. CBT is based on the scientifically supported assumption that most emotional and behavioral reactions are learned. The assumption is that if clients knew what the therapist had to teach them, clients would not have the emotional / behavioral problems they are experiencing.

The Role Of The Cognitive TherapistThe role of the cognitive therapist is to correct the client's belief system into a belief system that will help in reducing the results of the client's negative thoughts or feelings. This is when certain events occur that tend to remind the client of a certain scenario that might upset him or her from remembering that certain scenario. Each client has different scenarios and each client is completely different from another client. Each person has certain difficulties with things in life however again each one is different one another.

I will give an example, say for instance I was a single female and I had decided to go out with a few of my friends for a dinner party. I was at home preparing myself for the dinner party however I continued to look in the mirror and compare myself with my friends that are attending. My thoughts were overcoming my beliefs and knowledge about myself, which was taking over the positive thoughts I have always had about myself and overriding them with the negative thoughts that I was now receiving. I finally called my friends and explained to them that I was not feeling well so I would not be going after all.

This type of belief or problem that I would be having is a good reason as to why I would seek Cognitive Therapy. I would seek Cognitive Therapy as I have had these feelings about myself. Is it depression or is it something else? I would seek the therapy as Cognitive Therapy aims to free each client to choose other ways of interpreting their situation or feelings and reacting to it drawing from the most possible range of alternative methods available to each client.

In Cognitive Therapy, clients are most encouraged to examine and think about their beliefs critically. They must eliminate those beliefs that are irrational, distorted, maladaptive, or counterfactual. When eliminating those types of beliefs the result is elimination of many and most negative feelings. When a client feels that they have won the battle of those negative feelings they will be able to turn most everything in their life around in more of a positive manner. So the overall role of a Cognitive Therapist is that the therapist is to help each client seek the true person inside of themselves.

The assessment or the intervention used by this model"Cognitive-behavioral therapists seek to learn what their clients want out of life(their goals) and then help their clients achieve those goals. The therapist's role is to listen, teach, and encourage, while the client's roles is to express concerns, learn, and implement that learning" (NACBT). The assessment the therapists uses on a client when they are involved in cognitive-behavioral therapy is a very hands on one. They want the client to not feel like they are being told what to do, but how to do something and then to explore it for themselves. Counselors will not just talk to the client, talking can be done by anyone, anytime; cognitive-behavioral therapy involves undoing the unwanted thoughts and desires. The counselor will help the client identify what feelings occur and when they occur, so that they can be pin-pointed and acknowledged. Once the client learns to acknowledge these feelings they can stop them. An example of this would be when an individual will fake an injury to get out of playing with his family or friends because he feels like everyone else is better then him and he does not want to get made fun of. This individual would be asked to explain why he thinks he is not as good at sports then other people and why he thinks everyone else is better.

This technique could involve dealing with self-esteem issues, what makes other people better then others? The individual would be asked that next time they get asked to go and participate in a game that they only think about how much fun it will be to hang out with their friends and that the more you practice the better you get. The individual needs to replace his negative thoughts with thoughts that encourage him to get out there and to try, do not worry about being the best.

How are we going to use cognitive behavior to assist the dying clientThe best way to assist the dying client using the cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is to first ask them how they feel about dying. Some people are scared and some people are content with the fact they are dying. When the client is afraid of death and scared of leaving their family a CBT therapist needs to help the client discover why they are afraid of death and why they are scared of leaving their family. Let's say for example that they are afraid of death because they do not know what is to become of them, what the afterlife is like. The therapist could here talk about the clients faith, and what the faith believes in. Or they could have the client talk to someone who is in tune with the afterlife, a priest, a medium, someone who has experienced an "out of body" experience. This will help the client think about the options of what may happen after death, instead of not knowing anything at all.

Being scared of leaving your family behind is something that everyone goes through. The therapists would first ask the client what they are so scared about. Most of the time it is money, stability, who is going to care for them and love them, they just want their family to be safe. This is a very touchy subject for both the therapist and client. Here is where the therapist encourages the client to talk to their family, maybe have the family come in so the client can voice their concerns. The client needs to be reassured that the family is going to be ok and this can only be done by the family themselves.

ConclusionWhen working with clients who are dealing with any type of cognitive behavior like suicide, alcoholism, or dealing with death, cognitive behavior therapist have to understand and know that the client itself has the solutions to his or her problems. This is because it is the client who is having the thoughts, feelings and emotions. What the therapist has to do is allow the client to express what is inside and go from there.

Just like every problem comes with its own solution, when dealing with people with cognitive behavior, every situation is different and every person deals with emotions differently, that is why the same therapy will not work for everyone. The therapists must know this and work with what works best for the client. Even though there are different therapies for different people they all have one thing in common, and that is that the main goal is to help the client achieve a healthy mental state and reach their goal of feeling good.

Reference ListNational Association of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapists (2006) Retrieved on July 14,2006 at http://www.nacbt.org/whatiscbt.htmParrott, L. (2003). Counseling and Therapy. Retrieved July 17, 2006 from the University of Phoenix resource library