I have bad anxiety that’s been getting worse as more and more negative things pile up in my life and overwhelm me (hopefully I don’t seem like I’m complaining, there’s just been a lot going on and it’s getting to be a bit much). I’ve also struggled with depression which has been going away, thankfully, but I get flare-ups occasionally, often triggered by my thinking about what’s been going on.
I’ve done general talk therapy to process and learn to live with some trauma and combat some general negative thinking (I think if I were to ascribe a ‘type’ to it, it would be ACT, or Acceptance and Commitment Therapy). It helped but I think it’s time to try something different, something I can draw from in moments of desperation. I’ve heard good things about CBT (seems like the gold standard) and DBT. I actually own a DBT workbook though its location is unknown at the moment. I didn’t even get started on it before it went missing.
What do you guys suggest?
I have a therapy appointment on the 20th and I will definitely pose this question to my therapist then as well. Thanks for reading.
The important thing is that you find a good therapist and that you’re comfortable working with whatever method you two agree upon. As long as the methods have been proven effective, there generally are no differences between them in how effective they are. Since the problem you want to work on is anxiety, practically any method involving some form of exposure will be good. If you can choose, choose the method you would most like to try.
Thanks for your answer. I do like my current therapist. She seems experienced in dealing with people like me who are perhaps a bit hesitant to verbalize things. I trust her to help come up with the best solution for me. I’m so eager to start feeling better.
I’ve done CBT at a partial program and it really helped me understand my behavior-- specifically why I get paranoid, and how to combat negative thinking.
What It Is: Anxiety may also be a product of maladaptive, automatic cognitive processes that instigate inappropriate reactions. Mindfulness teaches people to be aware of their thoughts, feelings, and sensations from moment to moment without judgment or blame. A mindfulness practice aims to achieve a higher state of awareness for the present moment.
How It Addresses Anxiety: Pulling attention away from the past or future and focusing it on the present can aid in achieving a higher state of mind. A simple way to practice mindfulness is to focus attention on the body from one end (i.e. the feet,) and notice the sensations as the attention is focused across the rest of the body to the other end (i.e. the head).
Results: In the long run, self-awareness teaches people to manage and modify their thought processes in a healthy way.
CBT and dbt have both helped me. Both have given me tools to use in episodes. I had to find the right therapist who I felt comfortable opening up to complete. But it helps.
I think therapy is a great idea for a lot of people. Wishing you well
I do like my current therapist. She seems experienced in dealing with people like me who are perhaps a bit hesitant to verbalize things. I trust her to help come up with the best solution for me. I’m so eager to start feeling better.