Whether you’re struggling with alcohol, illegal drugs or prescription painkillers, there are plenty of rehab facilities in Louisville, KY to help you get back on track.
With any rehab program, medical detox might be challenging but the hard work is only just beginning at that stage. With your body free of toxins, you’ll be able to focus on ongoing recovery.
Therapy is central to effective, sustained recovery. You’ll have the opportunity to attend individual and group sessions. Modalities vary from program to program and depending on the nature of the addiction.
Today, we’ll be looking at some of the benefits cognitive behavioral therapy can bring about when used to treat addiction.
What Is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive behavioral therapy is commonly abbreviated to CBT but what is it?
Founded by Dr Aaron T Beck back in the 1960s, CBT is a classification of mental health counseling commonly used to treat depression and anxiety. Beyond these core applications, cognitive behavioral therapy can also be beneficial in other areas of mental and physical health.
CBT is a form of psychotherapy, the clinical term for talking therapy. Combining the dual-pronged approach of cognitive therapy alongside behavioral therapy, talking is the foundation for healing while learning new and healthier behaviors.
The concept of CBT is that you can manage and mitigate your problems by changing how you think and behave.
CBT assumes that:
- Many psychological problems are based on problematic ways of thinking
- Many psychological problems are based on learned patterns of behavior that’s unhelpful and damaging
- By learning better coping skills through cognitive behavioral therapy, you can relieve your symptoms and become more effective in your everyday life
You’ll typically undergo CBT sessions with a psychiatrist or psychologist. Licensed counselors and licensed social workers are also able to provide these services. If you’re considering rehab facilities in Louisville, KY, you can check in advance to see whether they offer CBT as a modality.
Where a discipline like psychoanalysis probes the past, CBT is a problem-oriented strategy focusing fully on the present. While past events are not completely ignored, all efforts are poured into changing current thoughts and behaviors damaging to recovery.
How Does CBT Work?
The underpinning concept of CBT is that what you think, what you feel physically and what you do are all interlocked. Negative thoughts and feelings can be enough to keep you trapped and endlessly repeating the same poor behavior and making the same disappointing decisions.
By breaking down serious problems into smaller, more manageable chunks, CBT can reduce the overwhelm faced when you’re beginning the road to recovery.
You’ll learn how to recognize negative patterns of thinking and how to reframe the way you think about something to improve the way you feel. You’ll discover the difference between hard facts and irrational thoughts, the latter being commonplace when you’re in the throes of addiction.
Beyond this, you’ll also learn how to identify negative, automatic thoughts. This type of thinking is impulsive and routinely based on misconceptions, fear, and self-doubt. Rather than turning to drink or drugs to cope, CBT will provide you with the tools to avoid self-medication.
CBT takes the form of a series of individual or group sessions with a qualified counselor. You can also expect to receive homework. This is a hands-on therapy that can pay great dividends as long as you put in the work required.
Benefits of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive behavioral therapy has been shown to have the following general benefits:
- Bolsters your communication skills
- Gives you better tools for dealing with your emotions
- Helps you heal from trauma
- Offers some benefits when dealing with chronic illness
- Reduces the symptoms of some mental health conditions
- Teaches coping skills that can mitigate how stress impacts you
- Works for treating some mental health problems when it’s not possible to use medication
The structure of CBT makes it ideal for multiple formats from individual and group sessions through to self-help books and online tools or apps.
So, if you’re ready to acknowledge the past but to focus on making positive change now to improve your future, CBT might be worth seeking out when you’re investigating Louisville rehab facilities.
CBT can be particularly useful for treating alcoholism or drug addiction in the following broad areas:
- You’ll learn how to dismiss the false beliefs that can trigger substance abuse or excessive alcohol consumption
- You’ll have better tools for improving your mood without relying on drink or drugs
- You’ll discover how to recognize and avoid the triggers that can easily lead to drinking or drug abuse if you’re struggling with addiction. You’ll also be able to apply the relevant coping skills to stay on track
- Communication skills will improve and you’ll be better placed to speak openly with friends, family, and therapists about your problems
- Your self-esteem and self-awareness should both improve giving you a solid platform from which to build your recovery
We’ll look now at some benefits of CBT when used to treat addiction to drink or drugs in a little more depth.
CBT For Addiction
- Benefit from a support network in place
- Become more positive in the way you think
- You’ll learn how to resist peer pressure more easily
- Your self-esteem should improve along with your self-awareness
- You can take small steps at your own pace
- CBT is highly cost-effective
- Therapy can take place alongside your normal activities
- You can taper off cognitive behavioral therapy rather than stopping abruptly
1) Benefit from a support network in place
Recovery is not a road you should take alone. The support of friends and family is invaluable but it also pays to increase the scope of your support network.
The structured nature of CBT means you’ll have access to your therapist on an ongoing basis. This alone is often enough to prevent relapse.
If you attend group sessions, there’s every chance you can help others in the group or they might be able to help you. Rather than continuing to take part in activities reinforcing your addiction, you’ll have access to people who can help you avoid this.
2) Become more positive in the way you think
If you’re laboring under an addiction to drugs or dependence on alcohol, chances are you’ll be suffering from negative thought patterns, too. The problem with this type of thinking is it often leads to relapse.
Positive thinking, on the other hand, can help you reverse this pattern. The more confident you become of coping in various situations, the less likely you’ll be to pick up a drink reach out for some drugs. Rather than temporarily numbing the pain at the expense of long-term recovery, CBT can help you stay focused while also coping more effectively.
3) You’ll learn how to resist peer pressure more easily
Peer pressure can be very tough to resist. This is particularly true during the early stages of recovery.
Here’s a practical example of CBT in this area…
You might initially imagine yourself saying no to temptation when a friend keeps asking you to head to the bar. You would then practice doing this in a controlled environment with your therapist. When the time comes and your friend is applying the pressure, you’ll be better positioned to say no firmly and without apology.
4) Your self-esteem should improve along with your self-awareness
Low self-esteem is one of the primary factors beneath addiction.
CBT helps you to improve your self-image so you should no longer fall back on self-destructive behaviors.
5) You can take small steps at your own pace
If you’re suffering from any addiction, breaking that addiction and remaining abstinent doesn’t come from a quick and way fix. You’ll need patience and the willingness to follow a process.
As cognitive behavioral therapy sessions progress, you’ll be introduced gradually to new concepts beneficial to breaking a cycle of addiction.
A good CBT therapist will push you quickly through the steps you find straightforward while devoting more time to the areas you find tougher to master.
6) CBT is highly cost-effective
Some forms of therapy are only effective in an inpatient setting.
While CBT is often offered in residential rehab programs, it can work equally well in an outpatient backdrop.
As an overall approach to fighting addiction, CBT can be very cost-effective and it’s often covered by medical insurance, too.
7) Therapy can take place alongside your normal activities
The fact you can easily attend CBT sessions as part of outpatient rehab means you can carry on your daily routine. This assumes your addiction is not severe enough to make residential treatment the wiser approach.
8) You can taper off cognitive behavioral therapy rather than stopping abruptly
Some forms of therapy and start and stop pretty abruptly.
With CBT, by contrast, you can reduce the frequency of sessions once you start feeling better. You can then taper off therapy over a period of time.
Which Types Of Addiction Is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Best For Treating?
According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, CBT is an effective, evidence-based form of treatment suitable for:
- Alcohol
- Cocaine
- Marijuana
- Methamphetamine
Of all these drugs, CBT works best when used for marijuana dependence. The next best treatment outcomes are associated with cocaine and opioids.
If you’re struggling with addiction to more than one substance, cognitive behavioral therapy is not as effective.
Overall, though, CBT was shown in one study to be effective in 60% of cases when used to treat addiction of various types.
Rehab Facilities In Louisville, KY
Since cognitive behavioral therapy can be used to help treat a range of addictions, it’s commonly used in rehab facilities throughout Kentucky.
Recovering from dependence on drink or drugs is exciting and challenging at the same time. Even if you’re eager to leave that destructive lifestyle behind, you’ll inevitably face obstacles and triggers. If you look for a Louisville rehab program offering CBT, you’ll benefit from a trained professional guiding you every step of the way.
What To Do Next
If you’re struggling with alcohol use disorder or substance abuse disorder, there are plenty of rehab centers to help you start down the road to recovery. Landmark Recovery is one of many rehab facilities in Louisville, KY so get in touch today and we’ll let you know whether residential rehab or an intensive outpatient program would be most appropriate.
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