Destructive and negative thinking often go hand in hand with substance use disorders. If you have suffered from these harmful thoughts, you may have sought help for things such as anxiety or depression, not realizing that one of the main issues is the abuse of drugs or alcohol.
Since your thoughts have such an influence on your wellbeing, changing negative thought patterns is part of recovery. In fact, a specific treatment, called cognitive behavioral therapy, can help you identify negative thinking and behaviors that may influence addiction.
What is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy?
Developed in the 1960’s by psychiatrist Aaron Beck, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a mix of behavioral therapy and psychotherapy. Beck came to realize that many of his patients had an ongoing internal dialogue that was influencing their emotions and decisions. He determined that it was important to identify a person’s “emotion-filled thoughts” and then determine whether they were valid or not.
The National Association for Mental Illness (NAMI) claims that CBT is different than other types of therapy because both the therapist and patient actively work together to help the patient recover. The therapist will work closely with the patient on learning a set of skills aimed at changing negative thought patterns and behaviors. This has led to an increased use of CBT in addiction treatment.
How Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is Used to Treat Addiction
According to the National Institutes on Drug Abuse (NIDA), CBT is useful in treating a person with a substance use disorder, and the skills that someone learns through CBT also remain long after the completion of treatment. This makes the therapy an excellent tool for preventing relapse.
The Cognitive Therapy Guide indicates that one of the obstacles to self-change is negative thinking. For example, when people use all-or-nothing thinking, they may believe that they need to do something perfectly or they are a failure. This type of thinking can lead to anxiety, depression, and addiction. One of the ways to change this is to use CBT to re-examine those thoughts and re-frame them into something more positive and realistic.
What You Can Expect From a CBT Session in a Florida Drug Rehab
When you attend a Florida drug rehab, you will have the opportunity to participate in CBT. You will work with a specially-trained therapist to learn about the ways that your thought patterns contribute to destructive behaviors. A typical CBT session can occur in either a group or individual setting. These sessions usually include:
- The exploration of conditions or situations that are creating troubles in your life.
- Finding insight into your thoughts, views, and feelings about these situations.
- Identifying any negative or erroneous thoughts to your life situations.
- Working on reframing harmful or negative thoughts by cognitive restructuring.
- Reviewing your progress in monitoring your thoughts and reactions in everyday life.
Since CBT therapy is helpful in treating substance abuse, it is vital that you find a treatment program that specializes in this type of therapy. The Orlando Recovery Center is a Florida drug rehab that offers holistic substance abuse treatment that includes medication-assisted treatment (MAT) and CBT. Contact us now to learn more about admissions and find out how our customized treatment programs can help you break the bonds of addiction.
The Recovery Village aims to improve the quality of life for people struggling with a substance use or mental health disorder with fact-based content about the nature of behavioral health conditions, treatment options and their related outcomes. We publish material that is researched, cited, edited and reviewed by licensed medical professionals. The information we provide is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. It should not be used in place of the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare provider.