Therapy approach
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
One of the most extensively researched therapy approaches: it looks at the links between thoughts, feelings and behaviour, and moves forward with concrete goals and skills.
- Concrete goals and measurable progress
- Practice between sessions
- Strong research support for anxiety and depression
What is CBT?
Cognitive behavioural therapy is based on the idea that it is not so much events themselves as the way we interpret them that affects our feelings and behaviour. For example, thinking “I'm having a heart attack” when your heart races creates intense fear, and that fear in turn intensifies the symptoms in your body. CBT aims to help you notice this cycle and change it.
How does it work?
CBT is a structured, collaborative approach. Together we set concrete goals and examine the automatic thoughts and behaviours that kick in when you face difficult situations. We then work with skills such as testing these thoughts against reality, developing alternative perspectives and gradually facing the situations you avoid.
Work between sessions
An important part of CBT is trying out what you've learned in sessions in everyday life. Emotion and thought records, behavioural experiments and step-by-step exposure exercises carry change beyond the therapy room.
When is it used?
- Panic disorder and generalised anxiety
- Depression
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder
- Social anxiety and specific phobias
- Exam anxiety, perfectionism and sleep problems
Frequently asked questions
Is there homework in CBT?
Yes, short exercises are suggested between sessions. They aren't like school homework; they are steps we plan together so you can try out what you've learned in everyday life.
This page was written by Zeynep Hilal Çelik and last reviewed on 27 October 2026.
