DEPRESSION

Cognitive Behavior Therapy Compared To Antidepressants

Cognitive Behavior Therapy Compared To Antidepressants

Introduction

Cognitive-behaviour therapy (CBT) helps to identify connections between a person's thoughts, feelings and behaviour. It focuses on specific problem-solving techniques enabling the development of coping strategies (Read 2000). As a result, CBT is increasingly being used with people with psychosis (British Psychological Society 2000). Beck (1979) introduced the idea of collaboration as being central to the cognitive style of therapy. Proctor (2003) argued that 'compliance' is a more accurate and honest representation of the power differences within therapy. Although this is in reference to a non-learning disabled population, it is even more salient when working in this area.

Here is what we know about antidepressants. First of all, studies on antidepressants are based on subjects who usually have pure depression and no other problems. At any one time about 10% of the population is depressed. But only a very small number of these people have pure depression. Most people who are depressed have other problems like anxiety, grief, substance abuse, relationship problems, marital problems, parenting problems or economic problems. People are really confused about what drugs and therapy can do and what these things can't do.

Discussion

Psychological treatment of depression (psychotherapy) can assist the depressed individual in several ways. First, supportive counseling helps ease the pain of depression, and addresses the feelings of hopelessness that accompany depression.  Second, cognitive therapy changes the pessimistic ideas, unrealistic expectations, and overly critical self-evaluations that create depression and sustain it. Cognitive therapy helps the depressed person recognize which life problems are critical, and which are minor. It also helps him/her to develop positive life goals, and a more positive self-assessment. Third, problem solving therapy changes the areas of the person's life that are creating significant stress, and contributing to the depression. This may require behavioral therapy to develop better coping skills, or Interpersonal therapy, to assist in solving relationship problems.

At first glance, this may seem like several different therapies being used to treat depression. However, all of these interventions are used as part of a cognitive treatment approach. Some psychologists use the phrase, cognitive-behavioral therapy and others simply call this approach, cognitive therapy. In practice, both cognitive and behavioral techniques are used together. 

Once upon a time, behavior therapy did not pay any attention to cognitions, such as perceptions, evaluations or expectations. Behavior therapy only studied behavior that could be observed and measured. But, psychology is a science, studying human thoughts, emotions and behavior. Scientific research has found that perceptions, expectations, values, attitudes, personal evaluations of self and others, fears, desires, etc. are all human experiences that affect behavior. Also, our behavior, and the behavior of others, affects all of those cognitive experiences as well. Thus, cognitive and behavioral experiences are intertwined, and must be studied, changed or eliminated, as an interactive pair.

Modern cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) was developed independently by two separate individuals: Aaron Beck, a psychiatrist, and Albert Ellis, a clinical psychologist. Both Beck and Ellis began working on their ...