Cognitive therapy is as effective as anti-depressants. I use a strengths-based approach. We will identify your values and aspirations and develop goals based on them. We will locate your schemas, which are mental structures that organize information. Develop realistic views about yourself, the world, and others, known as the cognitive triad. For depression, I will use the Beck Depression Inventory. Build a therapeutic alliance. Utilize Socratic questioning.
In Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), my primary theoretical orientation is an emphasis on action plans, previously called homework. I engage in psychoeducation. We will look at your typical day, core values, and aspirations. We will set goals to develop a sense of hope.

CBT will identify your automatic thoughts, which pop into your mind spontaneously. We notice automatic thoughts when we have an effect shift. Automatic thoughts can come in the form of images. I will ask, “What’s going through your mind right now?” Identify emotions and also the meaning of situations.

CBT is collaborative empiricism. I will engage in Socratic questioning with you. We can use behavioral experiments, analogies, metaphors, stories, imagery, and self-disclosure. For depression, I will use a PIR chart to determine your responsibility in a situation. We will eventually seek to understand your core beliefs and intermediate beliefs and rules. In addition to Socratic questioning, we will reframe the meaning of your earlier experiences, engage in belief change, and do a historical review of your life.

We will engage in problem-solving.

1. Specify your problem.

2. Brainstorm ideas.

3. Select a potential solution.

4. Implement the solution.

5. Measure the effectiveness.

Create a pros and cons list. In CBT, the client will review therapy notes after each session.

In CBT, we schedule activities for the client, engaging in pleasurable and masterful activities. We identify what clients think is good for them to schedule. Role-playing is another way to address depression in the CBT model, identifying and responding to negative cognitions. We will also use graded task assignments and bibliotherapy. Mindfulness has become ubiquitous in psychotherapy, including CBT, for depression.