Rehab Centers That Offer Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a treatment intervention that has made a significant impact on both substance abuse treatment and the world of therapy and counseling as a whole.

As a therapeutic approach that teaches people how to address their negative thoughts and behaviors and change them for the better, it’s clear that CBT in addiction treatment can play a strong role in helping people achieve and maintain long-term sobriety.

If you or a loved one is seeking the best in addiction treatment, read on to learn how you can access rehab centers with CBT and more about the many benefits of this life-changing therapy approach.

CBT is an empowering form of individual therapy that stems from psychotherapy and behavioral therapy techniques and is based on a few core principles.

It is used to treat a variety of mental health conditions, including anxiety disorders, depression, personality disorders, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and substance use disorders (SUDs).

CBT is a therapeutic approach that is collaborative, structured, goal-oriented, and short-term, and which works to help people recognize and change negative ways of thinking, feeling, and behaving.

It does this, in part, by teaching patients to be their own therapists through various problem-solving skills and coping strategies and is based on certain core principles.

Core principles of CBT include:

• Problematic ways of thinking can lead to problematic ways of behaving
• Problematic ways of behaving are learned as a result of psychological disorders
• People who think and behave in problematic ways can learn healthy coping mechanisms and strategies to promote positive change
• CBT can help teach these healthy coping skills through structured, goal-oriented, and time-based therapy.

CBT has two major influences – behavior therapy, which can be traced back to the early 20th century, and cognitive therapy, which can be traced back to the 1960s.

Aaron T. Beck then pioneered the combination of these two therapies as a type of structured talk therapy into what is now known as CBT. Since then, it has been studied and used extensively and consistently to provide relief to sufferers from a variety of mental health issues and disorders.

CBT in addiction treatment is often incorporated as a type of behavioral therapy program and is used alongside other treatment options like detox, medication-assisted treatment (MAT), support groups, and aftercare.

It can be found as part of a larger inpatient program or as a standalone treatment in an outpatient setting.

One of the first steps in CBT is identifying, recognizing, and challenging negative thoughts and noticing how these negative thoughts then lead to negative behaviors. In terms of substance abuse, this generally means identifying triggers that lead a person to abuse drugs or alcohol, such as experiencing feelings of anxiety, depression, or boredom.

A main component of CBT is learning healthy coping mechanisms to help people deal with real-life situations and challenges.

What this can mean for people with substance use disorders is learning to replace substance abuse as a coping mechanism with healthier coping mechanisms such as exercise, journaling, or talking to a friend or family member.

Being able to identify triggers and then address them with healthy coping mechanisms in turn helps people living with a substance use disorder to avoid relapse in the future and after treatment is over.

That is to say, people who would formerly turn to drugs or alcohol as a means of coping with stress and other triggers, can instead use coping skills learned through CBT to face the same challenges in more healthy and appropriate ways.

Cognitive behavioral therapy has proven to have a wide range of benefits when treating both mental health issues and drug or alcohol addiction.

CBT is considered an evidence-based treatment, meaning its use is supported by extensive research and involves an ongoing review of its effectiveness.

For this reason, people can feel confident and empowered while being treated with CBT as an evidence-based therapy in rehab, because it is nearly guaranteed to work for most people as long as they are willing to put in the time, effort, and commitment.

CBT is always personalized to the person being treated and is specific to their unique goals and what they hope to achieve from treatment.

Personalized CBT treatment is also customized for each person’s personality as well as to the specific mental health disorder or type of substance abuse disorder that they are living with.

CBT is a short-term form of therapy that focuses on long-term results, as it focuses on building important skills that people can make use of for the rest of their lives and long after their addiction recovery program has ended.

Difficult life situations are always going to happen to anyone and everyone, but knowing how to face these challenges in a healthy way for the long term, as opposed to leaning on drug or alcohol use, is what long-term recovery with CBT is essentially all about.

While every rehab center is unique, CBT sessions tend to share similar characteristics when incorporated as a part of addiction treatment.

CBT therapy sessions are typically between 60 and 90 minutes each and begin with an evaluation session to determine the patient’s issues and goals so that the therapist can determine a plan for them.

From there, patients can expect CBT to continue for several weeks or months, with each meeting focusing on a specific issue at hand, such as identifying negative thoughts or learning a specific coping skill and applying it to real-life situations.

Patients can also expect to receive homework during CBT, with assignments based on skills that the patient should be working on outside of therapy.

CBT is often combined with other types of therapies in order to provide a more comprehensive and well-rounded approach and can be used alongside both group therapy and family therapy. Specific therapies that are often combined with CBT include dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), person-centered therapy (PCT), and traditional psychotherapy or talk therapy.

CBT is also often used as a part of dual diagnosis treatment, which attempts to treat a person’s alcohol or drug addiction at the same time as any co-occurring mental health disorders that they have.

One of the biggest benefits of CBT is that it is customizable to each patient who is treated with it, starting with a personal assessment to determine each individual’s specific goals for treatment.

From that point on, CBT is very flexible. Both patients and therapists give continuous feedback, make changes accordingly, and integrate other therapies and treatment services as necessary.

While nearly anyone can find the skills taught in CBT to be beneficial and relevant, certain types of people may benefit more than others.

Patients who have co-occurring disorders, such as anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, eating disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are often those who can benefit the most from CBT.

Ideally, CBT for co-occurring disorders can relieve symptoms from both disorders, improve quality of life, decrease the need for hospitalization, and allow people to achieve the level of sobriety that they are hoping for.

People who have tried other forms of therapy unsuccessfully, or who are resistant to traditional forms of therapy, are often more receptive to CBT, partly due to its highly structured and short-term nature.

CBT for resistant patients can also be appealing because it is highly focused and adaptable, and teaches people practical and relevant techniques that they can apply to everyday situations that they encounter.

CBT is often an ideal choice for youths and adolescents, as its short-term effectiveness can be helpful as well as its adaptability.

CBT for youths also works to address issues that are very common in teens, such as anxiety, low self-esteem, lack of self-confidence, and behavioral issues, as well as disorders that are common in teens such as eating disorders, substance use disorders, and PTSD.

While it is common to find alcohol and drug rehab centers and treatment programs that offer CBT as a treatment service, it is important to make sure that any facility you choose is also of high quality and a good fit for you or your loved one.

When researching and evaluating rehab centers, it can be very helpful to visit facilities in person and meet with staff members at various levels.

During this time, you should also bring with you any questions that you have, take a tour of the facility, and address any concerns that you have along the way.

When seeking a rehab center that offers CBT, it is also essential to find one that is accredited and certified by relevant organizations in addiction treatment.

Accredited CBT rehab centers have passed various evaluations and met certain standards of quality care that mark them as addiction treatment centers of top quality.

Patient reviews, testimonials, and CBT success stories are also of high importance, and a facility with poor reviews or no reviews at all should be considered a major red flag.

Personal recommendations from friends, family, and colleagues should also be considered as well.

While CBT can be highly beneficial to many of the people who are treated with it, there are challenges in CBT at times and it is certainly not the right choice for everyone.

Some people may be resistant to CBT as a therapeutic approach, especially those who have experienced deep trauma, and there tend to be other types of therapy that are better in these situations.

In these situations, CBT may be combined with another type of therapy called motivational interviewing, which works to help people overcome resistance in therapy to find motivation and get past any ambivalence that they are experiencing.

CBT is most effective when completed, typically taking anywhere from 3 to 12 months based on an individual’s treatment plan. To benefit fully from a CBT program, it’s important for individuals to commit to the process and see it through to completion, regardless of the specific duration required for their unique needs.

Some people who are interested in CBT may be concerned about the potential cost of CBT in rehab. However, CBT as part of addiction treatment is typically found as part of the overall cost of the program and is not an additional charge.

When seeking CBT as a stand-alone therapy, people should always check with the individual therapy office to ensure that their insurance is accepted, as some therapists may not accept insurance or may only accept specific forms of insurance.

Here are questions that are frequently asked by people who are considering cognitive behavioral therapy.

Starting CBT in rehab is relatively easy once you have decided that this is the right type of program for you.

Entering a treatment program can be broken down into a few simple steps so that the process is simple and not intimidating.

Steps to take before entering an addiction treatment program:

1. Find a rehab center that offers CBT in the capacity you are looking for and that features marks of high-quality care, such as accreditation and positive testimonials.
2. Secure a referral from your regular healthcare provider if one is needed before starting treatment.
3. Determine whether residential treatment or outpatient treatment is the right choice for you.
4. Take part in a mental health assessment to determine the severity of your substance abuse and whether or not you have any co-occurring disorders.
5. Work with a clinical team to develop an individualized treatment plan that best suits your needs.
6. Approve your treatment plan and finalize your plans, paperwork, and any further logistics that need to be covered before starting treatment.
7. Begin your treatment, be proud of yourself, and feel empowered to know that the hardest step is already behind you.

After you have decided that you would like to try CBT as a substance use disorder treatment or mental health treatment, your next step is to contact recovery centers that you may be interested in.

When enrolling in rehab with CBT, you should have questions prepared and try to set up meetings to visit drug and alcohol rehab facilities in person, especially if it is an inpatient treatment center where you will be spending a significant amount of time.

If you or a family member is in need of substance abuse treatment, we at RehabNet.com encourage you to seek cognitive behavioral therapy as a quality option.

And, when you are ready to seek CBT or any other type of behavioral health therapy or treatment service for substance abuse, we can help connect you with the best addiction treatment in your area.

No one should ever have to feel that they are alone in their struggles with addiction, and everyone deserves a chance at a better and healthier life – contact us today to get started.