CBT Information & Worksheets 
                  More information can be found at www.cbtplus.ie 
         
        Table of Contents 
        Information on CBT Therapy                   2 
         What is CBT?                                2 
         What does a CBT session look like?          3 
         How long does it take?                      4 
         Homework in CBT                             4 
        CBT Worksheets                               5 
         Automatic Thought Record                    5 
         Unhelpful Thinking Styles                   6 
         ABC Model of CBT                            7 
         Setting Goals for Therapy                   8 
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
                                                      
                     Information on CBT Therapy 
         
                           What is CBT? 
           CBT  (cognitive  behavioural  therapy)  is  a  form  of  talking  therapy  that  helps  people 
        recognise and identify the role that some of their thoughts (cognitions) have on what they do 
        (behaviours). By making links between what we do, think and feel, CBT can help us make positive 
        changes to our cognitions and behaviours. Making these changes can help us feel better. Unlike 
        some of the other talking treatments, it focuses on the 'here and now' problems and difficulties. 
        Instead of focusing on the causes of your distress or symptoms in the past, it looks for ways to 
        improve your state of mind now.  
         
           CBT says that it's not the event that causes our emotions, but how we interpret it - what 
        we think or what meaning we give that event or situation. CBT can help you make sense of 
        overwhelming problems by breaking them down into smaller parts, making it easier to see how 
        they are connected and how they affect you. The components of a problem, event or difficult 
        situation are: 
        •  Thoughts 
        •  Emotions 
        •  Physical feelings 
        •  Actions 
         
        Each of these areas can affect the others. How you think about a problem can affect how you feel 
        physically and emotionally. 
         
           CBT is one of the most effective treatments for conditions where anxiety or depression is 
        the main problem and is the most effective psychological treatment for moderate and severe 
        depression. It is as effective as antidepressants for many types of depression. CBT helps with many 
        different  kinds  of  problems.  These  include  anxiety,  depression,  panic,  phobias  (including 
        agoraphobia and social phobia), stress, bulimia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic 
        stress disorder, bipolar disorder and psychosis. CBT may also help if you have difficulties with 
        anger, a low opinion of yourself or physical health problems, like pain or fatigue. 
         
         
         
         
         
         
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                     What does a CBT session look like? 
         
           At the beginning of therapy, you will describe to your therapist your problems and set 
        goals you want to work towards. The problems may be troublesome symptoms, such as 
        sleeping poorly, trouble socialising with friends, or difficulty concentrating on reading or 
        work. Or they could be life problems, such as being unhappy at work, having difficulty dealing 
        with an adolescent child, or being in an unhappy marriage. 
           These problems and goals then become the basis for planning the content of sessions 
        and discussing how to deal with them. Typically, at the beginning of a session, you and your 
        therapist will jointly decide on the main topics you want to work on that week. You will allow 
        time  to  discuss  the  previous  session's  conclusions  and  review  the  progress  made  with 
        the between-session tasks. At the end of the session, you and your therapist will plan another 
        assignment outside of the session. 
           The reason for having this structure is that it helps to use the therapeutic time most 
        efficiently. It also makes sure that important information isn't missed out (the homework 
        results, for instance) and that both you and your therapist think about new assignments that 
        naturally follow on from the session. 
           Your  therapist  takes  an  active  part  in  structuring  the  sessions  to  begin  with.  As 
        progress is made and you grasp the principles you find helpful, you take more and more 
        responsibility for the content of sessions. So by the end, you feel empowered to continue 
        working independently. 
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
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                        How long does it take? 
                                
           When you are having CBT treatment, you usually have regular weekly sessions with 
        your therapist. A session typically lasts for just under an hour. Your therapist usually uses the 
        first  one  or  two  sessions  to  assess  your  problem  and  formulate  a  treatment  plan.  This 
        assessment is different from any assessment that another therapist might have made in the 
        past, so it is always needed. 
           The treatment plan will include an estimate of the number of treatment sessions 
        required.  Between  four  and  ten  treatment  sessions  is  typical.  Some  patients  improve 
        unexpectedly quickly and need fewer sessions than was estimated. Some patients improve 
        more slowly than expected and might be offered additional sessions. 
           After your treatment is complete, you might be offered some follow-up sessions at 
        longer intervals, perhaps a few months, to ensure that the improvement has been sustained. 
        So CBT treatment usually takes at least several months, but it is rare for it to last more than a 
        year. However, the benefits of CBT can be ongoing because during your treatment, you 
        acquire tools and skills that you can use throughout the rest of your life without involving any 
        therapist. 
                                
                         Homework in CBT 
                                
           You will find out that 'In between-session assignments/homework' is an essential part 
        of CBT and dramatically enhances the effectiveness of therapy. This will be discussed further 
        in  your  first  appointment.  Your  therapist  will  work  with  you  in  the  initial stages  to  also 
        understand what goals would be most appropriate for you to set yourself so that they are 
        specific, measurable and achievable in a short-term, focused cognitive behavioural model of 
        therapy. The specifics of the assignments will always be discussed with you before it being 
        assigned. Please ask your therapist if you have any questions about your assignments. 
         
         
         
         
         
         
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