Category Archives: cognitive therapy

Should I Should?

Posted on August 24, 2021 by jamesmatter

When I use the word “should” my powerful imagination just created a parallel universe where things turned out differently.
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Depression Treatment Without Medication

Posted on March 22, 2021 by jamesmatter

I frequently get questions about treatment for depression without using medication, or going off medication for depression without relapsing. I’m going to summarize what I know and give my point of view about this. First and most importantly, nothing said … Continue reading →

Posted in behavioral health, cognitive therapy, Depression, mental health, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Managing Health Anxiety

Posted on March 23, 2020 by jamesmatter

I am staying home like everyone else, surfing media like everyone else, most of it either humorous (my choice) or useless (most news as usual). But I ran across an item from someone who was writing as a self-proclaimed “recovering … Continue reading →

Posted in anxiety, behavioral health, cognitive therapy, Crisis survival, physical health | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Do Therapists Give advice?

Posted on February 29, 2020 by jamesmatter

I started off as a peer counselor in an outpatient substance abuse treatment program– I had stopped using mind altering substances in an addictive way for over a year and gave lots of advice to people who were trying to … Continue reading →

Posted in behavioral health, change, choices, cognitive therapy, dealing with change, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, mental health, Therapy processes | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Pay Attention When I’m Talking to Me!

Posted on September 17, 2018 by jamesmatter

Just want to follow up on the last post, because I met with a client earlier a couple of weeks ago who specifically wanted to start working in a cognitive way. The hardest part of doing cognitive therapy, I’ve found, … Continue reading →

Posted in behavioral health, change, cognitive therapy, mental health | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Power Tool Safety

Posted on August 20, 2018 by jamesmatter

A theme that I come back to again and again in my work with clients is that one’s mind is powerful. My joke about that is that you need to use such a powerful tool safely. Another thing to keep … Continue reading →

Posted in behavioral health, cognitive therapy, mindfulness, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Three Ways to Change

Posted on January 26, 2018 by jamesmatter

(Apologies to readers for the quick updates– it’s very hard to proofread one’s own work, and I spotted a couple of typos. Probably didn’t spot some others.) I have reflected on many occasions that the therapist’s job has a lot … Continue reading →

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Turning the Mind, Fighting Worries

Posted on June 2, 2017 by jamesmatter

Sometimes I forget to put things here because they seem very basic to me, but then I go over them with a client and I realize that while they may be very basic and simple to learn, they are not … Continue reading →

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Luxury Problems? Compared to What?

Posted on March 8, 2015 by jamesmatter

People who have been exposed to the world of AA & other 12-step programs will be familiar with these phrases. Let’s focus on the first one first. Frequently, someone who is relatively new to recovery will start talking about how … Continue reading →

Posted in cognitive therapy, Emotions, existentialism, Feelings, happiness, Learning, luxury problems, mental health, Recovery, Sadness, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Your Self-Concept Is Out of Date

Posted on January 28, 2015 by jamesmatter

For those of you who follow this blog, bless you. I have been quite busy, but have a backlog of topics that I hope to discuss. One really interesting one is a somewhat technical article on the difference between grief, … Continue reading →

Posted in behavioral health, change, cognitive therapy, dealing with change, Depression, Distress tolerance, Emotions, Feelings, Frustration, handling the unexpected, Learning, mental health, Recovery, Sadness | Leave a comment