What is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)?

The question “What is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy?” is one that everyone who has stepped into the world of therapy has asked or will ask at least once. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, perceives the human mental world on the axis of thoughts, emotions, and behaviors.

When it comes to “going to therapy,” the phrase “Let’s delve into your childhood…” does not really apply to CBT. Of course, it’s impossible not to talk about the past when it comes to psychotherapy! However, the focus of CBT is on current problems and their solutions based on the here-and-now technique.

As I mentioned earlier, CBT works on the axis of thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. What do I mean by this? As you can see in the diagram below, our thoughts, emotions, and behaviors function as a mechanism that directly influences each other.

If we do not work in psychology or related professions, have not thought deeply about these subjects, or have not previously undergone therapy, we may not be aware of the working principles of this mechanism. We may not realize which thought gives rise to which emotion or which emotion leads to which behavior. Even if we are not aware, this wheel is turning in our minds and creating our reality.

Behaviour, Emotion, and Thought

In this article where I answer the question of what CBT is, I find it appropriate to focus on the differences between thoughts and emotions. Our thoughts are our internal dialogues, products of our minds, and something we constantly generate anew. I am not exaggerating when I say we constantly generate new ones. If we don’t hold onto them and allow them to pass, thoughts are not permanent. They give rise to each other and to emotions. (Does the chicken come from the egg or the egg from the chicken? Well, do emotions come from thoughts or thoughts from emotions?)

For example, while walking down the street, the thought of a sweater your colleague wore that day might suddenly cross your mind. Later, you run into a childhood friend on the street, and you forget about that thought until you see that friend or that sweater again.

At this point, I will ask you a somewhat debatable question: Can we choose and control what we think?

Let your answer to this question simmer for a bit, and let’s continue with the article. Some of the thoughts in our minds are more permanent, while others are more quickly forgotten. For instance, suddenly remembering an embarrassing moment from years ago while trying to fall asleep at night, and constantly forgetting your email password! While our memory never lets us forget certain thoughts, other thoughts silently wait in the vast recesses of our minds (the subconscious?) for the day they will be remembered.

The reason behind this is that all thoughts are paired with an emotion. The depth of the imprints these thoughts leave in our memory is determined by the intensity of the emotions they are paired with. For example, the disappointment you feel when your marriage proposal is rejected may differ in intensity from the disappointment you feel when you miss the bus. You might remember missing the bus for a maximum of 2 days, but I guess you’d remember your marriage proposal for a longer time!

By stating that thoughts and emotions are paired with each other, we have now reached the emotional stage in the “thought, emotion, and behavior” trio of cognitive behavioral therapy. Our emotions often serve as echoes of our thoughts. We think of something first, and then that thought triggers an emotion in us. So, let me ask my second question. Can we control our emotions?

Depending on the emotion that matches our thought, a few “action plans” come to mind. We then execute one of them. Let’s say you’re walking down the street and you see money on the ground. The thought that comes to mind is “There is money on the ground,” the emotion that matches your thought is “excitement,” and the first action that comes to mind might be “picking up the money.” Whether to pick up the money or leave it on the ground, to put it in your pocket after picking it up, or to give it to someone else constitutes the final step, or the “behavior” stage, of the trio. As you might predict, my final question is about whether we can control our behaviors. What do you think?

When we look through the lens of CBT, your behavior triggers a new thought, your thought triggers a new emotion, and the new emotion, in turn, triggers a new behavior, continuously reshaping life in this manner. Whenever we intervene at any step of this cycle, the mechanism of the cycle changes. Since the mind is an abstract and delicate landscape, such intervention, when consciously performed by an expert, leads to positive changes in a person’s life.

How Does CBT Work?

In summary, during a CBT session, the therapist and the client jointly identify the issue they will work on. They explore the client’s thoughts and the emotions associated with these thoughts. By asking questions such as what behaviors are triggered by these thoughts and emotions, and what alternative behaviors could be adopted, the client gains insight, self-awareness, and becomes empowered to choose their actions, or in other words, to “choose their life.” Since emotions often function as echoes of thoughts and noticing our emotions can be challenging for various reasons, conducting this exploration with a skilled psychotherapist can lead to positive changes in a person’s life. If you find yourself struggling with issues you can’t handle on your own, if there are moments when you say, “I don’t know why I act this way,” if you find yourself saying, “This thought keeps coming to my mind and it’s causing me anxiety,” or if you express statements like “I don’t feel my emotions,” or “My emotions are too intense, I can’t cope,” then you may consider seeking psychotherapy.

I wish you a colorful and fulfilling life where you can notice your thoughts, feel all your emotions, and choose your behaviors!