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Nycki
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Joined: 06 May 2007
Posts: 39
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| Posted: Mon 0606 Aug 07, 4 pm Post subject: 1. Chapter 1 - A Breakthrough in the Treatment of Mood Disor |
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Some Housekeeping....
I shall start each "chapters heading" at the end of the week prior to our beginning it...so that it is there for ppl to post into at the right time. It would be appreciated if we could all post under the one topic heading, so that the chapters stay in order...giving users an easier format to have to deal with.
Please feel free to express your thoughts and know that no matter what you think or feel...its fine with us!
Happy learning!! |
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Nycki
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Posts: 39
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| Posted: Tue 1414 Aug 07, 3 am Post subject: |
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How interesting it is to learn that Depression is the #1 health problem. I believe those stats are universal too. Its good to know that CBT helps with a lot of disorders...since we dont typically present with only the one disorder at a time. Its common for those with Depression to also suffer from Anxiety and vice versa. Knowing that CBT deals with both of those disorders at the same time, in the same way reassures the sufferer that they are 'on the right track' and that any effort they do put forth will help them 'all round'.
I think that hearing that it takes '12 weeks for mildly depressed ppl to have improvement of symptoms' may envoke some discouragement for those who are starting out. When you are feeling depressed...youre not wanting to think that there isnt a cure that can instantly fix you...and when ure depressed you see the whole world as well as yourself, in hopeless terms, so there isnt any way that your depression is only mild! The great thing about CBT though is that it is a 'skill set' that you only need to learn once and then you can apply it to all situations that you experience in your life. While 12 weeks sounds like a long time, when you consider that that 12 weeks can set you up for life....its not quite so overwhelming perhaps!
Another thing I picked up in this chapter was where Burns says that CBT is effective because it is "practical and based on common sense'. I think that is the beauty of CBT. When many ppl first learn about CBT they often say that they were already doing parts of it in their lives. I think that we naturally tend to try to dedistress outselves by trying to alter our perception of events/people that upset us. Depression is of course a problem in that when you have a 'cloak of doom and gloom' over you, you are no longer able to naturally alter your twisted thinking. Learning CBT...being forced to untangle your negative thoughts, is how we return to that natural way of 'self preservation' which we couldnt achieve on our own when depressed. Have you found that you were doing 'some of the techniques' that make up CBT...prior to your learning about CBT? Do you think that its a part of our natural inclination to want to lesson our own pain by altering our thoughts?
This chapter...with its study of Medications v's CT sets a good grounding for us to have faith in the positive influence of CBT with or without medications, in our lives. |
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anoopkumar
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Joined: 06 Aug 2007
Posts: 15
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| Posted: Tue 1414 Aug 07, 12 pm Post subject: |
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inspite of the poor participation its good to see that we are progressing well with the study.
page 10,11, and 12 are just wonderful,where Dr.Burns enumerates the benefits of cbt-the most important aspect is the understanding it paves way-the understanding that it is the hardwired irrational beliefs and perceptions that cause our emotional troubles is the greatest step towards a better living- what i feel is that the therapy tag should go and it becomes a routine of our lives.
yesterday just before taking my children to their dance classes my dad said something- i found myself violently handling the steering- pressing the acce. ,brakes too hard...on dropping the kids i parked the car ,took out my notebook and started applying CBT techniques-felt calmer...
we are nothing but bundles of beliefs and perceptions-most of them harmful to us-the understanding tha twe can work at our own beliefs and change them over time is a promising exhubernt thought in itself-it teaches us the way to seek our own destiny as far us our emotional life is concerned.
cheers,
anoopkumar. |
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Will
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Posts: 5
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| Posted: Thu 1616 Aug 07, 7 am Post subject: |
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Chapter One continues to offer hope for people who depress themselves. The main points that I got from this chapter include:
Mild depression can be relieved with cognitive therapy in a relatively short time (Burns suggests as little as 12 weeks).
Cognitive therapy provides an explanation as to why we get depressed and what we can do to alleviate the depression.
Cognitive therapy involves the application of safe and effective methods that we can all learn how to use.
We can use cognitive therapy to prevent future occurrences of depression. We can also use it for personal growth.
The first principle of cognitive therapy is that all our moods are created by our thoughts.
The second principle is that we feel depressed when our thoughts are dominated by negativity – when we see ourselves and the world in dark and gloomy terms.
The third principle is that the negative thoughts that cause us to feel depressed are always distorted in some way.
The fourth principle is that we can effectively improve our moods by learning to detect and correct the distortions in our thinking.
Research shows that people treated with cognitive therapy often improve more rapidly than people treated with drugs.
Relapse rates for people treated with CT are lower than for people treated with drugs.
There is a difference between feeling better and getting better. Getting better involves systematically applying and reapplying the techniques of cognitive therapy whenever the need arises.
Regards,
Will |
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Nycki
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| Posted: Sun 1919 Aug 07, 1 am Post subject: |
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Hi Anoopkumar...
Thank u for sharing your comments. I agree with you that pages 10 -12 are a great inspiration for us...encouraging us to take the time to really get to know this type of therapy.
I think its great that CT is able to help with minor irritations as well as lifes major problems. I feel that not all therapy types are as flexible as this one!
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Nycki
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| Posted: Sun 1919 Aug 07, 1 am Post subject: |
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Hi Will....
I found it very interesting how Burns says that there is a difference between 'feeling better' and 'getting better'...and yet he calls his book 'Feeling Good'! |
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