Cognitive behavioral therapy, the techniques that wellness counselors use in counseling, is based on evidence that our well-being is not determined by what happens to us, but by how we accept and respond to it. The basis of cognitive behavioral therapy is the correction of negative automatic thoughts and beliefs, correction of thinking errors. During consultations, efforts are made to teach the client to recognize his thoughts, to perceive situations realistically, and to teach relaxation techniques.
The welfare consultant remembers one case when a person applied who felt very lonely, uninteresting and needed by no one. The client told about the flooding thoughts that the people around him communicate with him only out of pity, analyzed all the conversations many times in his mind, created the worst scenarios of future social contacts, blaming himself for what has not yet happened and may not happen. During the consultations, with the help of a welfare consultant, he analyzed his thoughts, which thoughts prevail and influence his withdrawal from friends and relatives. After identifying automatic thoughts, thinking errors were changed with the help of experiments. Thanks to the consultations, the person gained the experience that due to his own negative thoughts, a false perception of the environment and his relationship with the environment can be formed. The client’s favorite activities were also sought in order to increase the client’s activity, distracting him from negative thoughts.
It is important to understand that sometimes we create a problem in our head without any reason, or we hyperbolize the situation in our mind. As negative thoughts keep swirling in our head, emotions take over and it becomes difficult to concentrate and find a solution to problems, we give up and the problems only deepen and the mood worsens. We find ourselves in a closed circle. That is why it is necessary to seek help as soon as you feel the first emotional difficulties and not wait until the situation becomes extremely serious.
