Cognitive Behavior Therapy Psychotherapy

1184 Words5 Pages

Renowned psychiatrist and researcher Judith Lewis Herman articulately stated, “After a traumatic experience, the human system of self-preservation seems to go onto permanent alert, as if the danger might return at any moment” (Herman, 1992, p. 16). Herman’s poignant words succinctly define the daily experience of people suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). As of 2015, there is no standard treatment plan to combat PTSD, however, combining eye-movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) psychotherapy with cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) has shown positive results in aiding patients minimize and/or relieve symptoms associated with PTSD. Post-traumatic stress disorder can occur after an individual endures an incapacitating …show more content…

Essentially, the clinician teaches their patients suffering from PTSD how to replace unreasonable thought patterns with healthy, coherent ones. At the core of this talk-therapy method is learning how to avoid reacting in a purely emotional manner (which is another debilitating symptom of PTSD) and replacing it with self-awareness, self-acceptance and self-reliance. CBT is particularly effective with PTSD clients because it helps the client identify their irrational and maladaptive dogmas so they can consciously replace them with realistic beliefs. Since a human’s mind has a resilient propensity to lock onto familiar notions and remain unchanged despite the negative or stagnant outcomes of PTSD, CBT assertively addresses this phenomena by having the client complete homework assignments, partake in role playing exercises and actively tackle their own distressing thoughts. While this therapeutic …show more content…

1515), however clinicians usually choose one method over the other as oppose to combining these two exceedingly effective methods of treatment. The ultimate goal of EMDR is to bring the repetitive, negative, unconscious thought process to a halt by aiding the brains hemispheres to function normally again once the PTSD trigger is removed. The ultimate goal of CBT is for the clients to appropriately and regularly assess themselves in order to regulate undesirable behavior. Together, they adequately address the unconscious and conscious mind. These rehabilitations balance one another out by relieving symptoms early on through EMDR and providing groundwork for consistency through