Atlanta Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Addiction is a severe mental health disorder that can profoundly affect every aspect of your life. If you or a loved one is struggling with addiction, knowing there is hope is essential. At Samba Recovery, we offer Atlanta cognitive-behavioral therapy program that has helped countless patients in Northern Atlanta overcome addiction and achieve lasting sobriety. Contact Samba Recovery at 888.505.8279 to learn more about our cognitive behavioral therapy program in Norcross, and other addiction therapy programs in Atlanta.

What Is Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy?

Behavioral therapy is a broad term that refers to any therapy that focuses on changing problematic behaviors. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is a type of behavioral psychotherapy often used to treat mental health disorders like addiction. Psychotherapy is also called “talk therapy” because it involves talking with a trained mental health professional to identify and change negative thinking and behaviors.

CBT follows these principles:

• Thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are all connected.
• Thoughts can influence feelings.
• Changing thinking patterns can lead to positive changes in behaviors and emotions.

Cognitive-behavioral therapy has been proven to be an effective treatment for addiction and other mental health disorders. A cognitive-behavioral therapy program is usually short-term, lasting 10 to 12 weeks. It is typically conducted in individual sessions.

Most rehab programs include CBT as part of a comprehensive treatment plan. Other mental health conditions that CBT helps to manage include anxiety, depression, eating, and sleeping disorders. Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are also often treated with a program including CBT.

How Does CBT for Addiction Treatment Work?

CBT for rehab works by helping patients struggling with addiction understand the connection between their thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. Once they understand this connection, they can start identifying negative thought patterns and behaviors that keep them stuck in their addiction. After identifying these negative patterns, they can begin to replace them with positive ones that will help them recover from their addiction.

In addition to CBT, other types of therapy often used in addiction treatment include individual therapy, group therapy, family therapy, and 12-step programs. However, any of these can use CBT techniques to improve their effectiveness. The overall goal of therapy in rehab is to have patients and rehab specialists work together to overcome addiction. Therapy sessions provide support, education, and guidance for patients.

The Effectiveness of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Studies show that CBT can be an effective treatment for addiction. It usually encompasses several separate interventions like skill building and relapse prevention. CBT is also one of the most studied forms of psychotherapy, so there is vast support for its application with a wide-range of behavioral health problems, including substance use.

CBT has been demonstrated to have a high level of efficacy when compared with having no therapy at all. When assessed with other treatment techniques, studies have had varied findings. Some show CBT to be even more effective when combined with new age therapies like medication assisted treatment (MAT) and traditional 12-step programs.

Drug overdoses are now the leading cause of accidental death in the United States. The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) estimates that more than 70,000 people in the U.S. died from drug overdoses in 2017. These deaths were primarily caused by opioids like prescription painkillers, heroin, and fentanyl.

Get Help Today

Addiction does not improve on its own. Our Atlanta cognitive behavioral therapy program in Norcross has helped many patients overcome addiction and achieve lasting sobriety. Please contact us today to learn more about our CBT program and how talk therapy can benefit people struggling with addiction, or schedule an appointment.