“What is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy?”~ Melissa Yaeger, MA, EDS, LPC interviewed by Loretta Depka Zerbo
June 29, 2021Setting goals, journaling, guided discovery, positive thinking . . . these are all concepts connected to a kind of treatment approach called Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT.) CBT explores emotions, thoughts and your own personal behavioral patterns and re-frames them in a more positive way. Melissa Yaeger, MA, EDS, LPC, a practitioner based at The Starting Point, spoke about how CBT differs from other therapeutic approaches. Melissa works with adolescents and adults with depression, anxiety, self-harm, eating disorders, substance abuse, personality disorders, recovery from physical/emotional abuse and the processing of grief. She uses a number of therapeutic approaches, but her primary approach is client-centered therapy. Her empathetic, compassionate, and healing environment strives to help her clients work through challenging situations to achieve their goals. Melissa is a Licensed Professional Counselor, Educational Specialist, and holds a Master’s in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. More information about Melissa can be found on her practitioner profile at https://startingpoint.org/practitioner/melissa-yaeger 0:00 Intro 2:13 Self talk matters 3:24 Our Own Worst Critic 4:25 How to speak nicely to ourselves 5:02 Toxic positivity 6:11 What is cognitive behavioral therapy 6:54 Traditional CBT 8:24 Battling perfectionism 9:37 Balanced thinking 11:24 Thought tracking 12:37 Practicing replacement thoughts 13:50 Breaking tough thoughts 14:56 CBT & young people 16:00 Older population & CBT 16:29 Example of changing a thought 19:21 Talking to yourself 20:05 Where do bad thoughts come from? 21:06 Self talk & past hurts 21:55 Does CBT work for everyone? 22:53 Problem solving skills & CBT 23:44 Practitioners & Clients 26:00 It takes time The Starting Point Website: https://startingpoint.org/ To Donate Please Visit: https://startingpoint.org/todays-dona… The Founder of The Starting Point Vince DiPasquale’s YouTube Channel : https://www.youtube.com/c/VinceDiPasq… For Live & Virtual Meetings Please Visit The Starting Point Calendar: https://startingpoint.org/calendar/