Can rational emotive behavior therapy help with anxiety disorders? Yes, it can. A rational emotive behavior therapy program in Hanover, PA can help you identify irrational and negative thought patterns. Once they’ve been identified, you can begin to replace them with more rational and positive thoughts.
The Basic Premise of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy
The basic premise of rational emotive behavior therapy (also known as REBT) is that most people want to succeed, but irrational thoughts can get in the way. Each experience a person has is seen through their own set of filters. Markedly, irrational thoughts can cause experiences to be viewed negatively. Life can quickly become overwhelming when small setbacks are viewed more significantly, or even as insurmountable challenges. Negatively viewed events often pop up from past experiences during substance abuse treatment programs in PA. This creates a cycle of anxiety that grows over time as more and more experiences that can be viewed negatively occur. When these filters and thought patterns begin to be replaced, life becomes more manageable and less anxiety-inducing. Hope begins to outweigh negativity, and a more positive outlook develops.
ABC’s of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy
The three basic principles of REBT are:
- A: Activating event
- B: Beliefs or thoughts that are irrational
- C: Consequences stemming from irrational beliefs or thoughts
A. Activating Event
The activating event is what triggers the irrational thoughts. For example, you’ve been dating someone. You keep in contact each day. One day, you send them a text, and they don’t respond. This is an activating event.
B. Irrational Beliefs or Thoughts
Irrational thoughts can lead you to conclude that they are no longer interested in you and that you must have done something wrong. It can lead you to conclude further that you aren’t worthy of a relationship and will be alone forever.
C. Consequences
The irrational thoughts lead to consequences. In this case, these could be feelings of anxiety, worthlessness, and loneliness.
How REBT Works
How can rational emotive behavior therapy help with anxiety disorders? REBT identifies these three principles, then sets out to help you change them. The three main techniques used are problem-solving, cognitive restructuring, and coping. These concepts provide significant support for dual diagnosis treatment in Hanover, PA.
Problem-Solving
Activating an event helps you manage problem-solving. This can involve problem-solving, conflict resolution, social skills, and assertiveness. For example, problem-solving leads you to realize that there are several reasons why someone hasn’t contacted you back. Perhaps they forgot, lost interest, or were busy.
Cognitive Restructuring
This teaches you how to look at the activating event differently. Together with challenging irrational thoughts, utilize humor or irony, rationalization, or reframing how you see the event. Accepting the person’s lack of interest as a possibility, for example, doesn’t mean you’re unworthy. Looking at it logically, you may see that the two of you just weren’t right for each other.
Coping
Coping gives you ways to cope with the consequences of irrational thoughts. By the same token, relaxation, meditation, and hypnosis may be used. You use these new coping mechanisms to promote overall physical and mental health in place of less-healthy methods of coping. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in PA can be used to help with anxiety disorders, either alone or alongside other treatment options. In effect, this method places the counselor in a guiding position, allowing the client to reflect on their own thoughts and emotions and draw conclusions with the help of a therapist. Personal growth is not possible without personal effort, and REBT largely depends on this to be effective.
Anxiety Help in Hanover
If you or someone you know is suffering from an anxiety disorder, contact The Ranch PA. REBT can help calm your anxiety. This effective method triumphs over any cause of anxiety, including those with dual diagnosis conditions. To learn more about the benefits of REBT, contact us at 717.969.9126.
