CBT Blog: Articles From The Centre for CBT

Online CBT for Anxiety: How Virtual Sessions Work

If anxiety has a way of showing up at the worst possible time—before a work meeting, during the night, in traffic, while checking your inbox, or for no obvious reason at all—you are not alone. For many people, anxiety is not just “worry.” It can feel like a smoke alarm that keeps going off even…

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Depression: An Educational Overview

Depression can shrink a person’s world in quiet, powerful ways. It can make getting out of bed feel like climbing a hill in wet boots. It can flatten motivation, drain pleasure from relationships, and turn ordinary setbacks into proof that nothing will ever improve. For many people in Ontario, depression is not just sadness. It…

What Is CBT Therapy? A Guide to Cognitive Behavioural Therapy

If you’re exploring treatment options for anxiety, depression, or other mental health concerns, you’ve likely encountered the term “CBT” or “cognitive behavioural therapy.” Understanding what CBT therapy is and how it works can help you make informed decisions about your mental health care. Understanding Cognitive Behavioural Therapy What is CBT therapy? Cognitive behavioural therapy is a…

Is Exposure Therapy a Type of CBT?

If you’re researching treatment options for anxiety, phobias, or related conditions, you’ve likely encountered terms like “exposure therapy” and “cognitive behavioural therapy” (CBT). Understanding the relationship between these approaches can help you make informed decisions about your mental health care. Understanding the Relationship Between CBT and Exposure Therapy Is exposure therapy CBT? Yes, exposure therapy is…

Relationship Problems

We naturally are social creatures and enjoy the company of others. However, we may experience recurring difficulty when it comes to getting along with others, including co-workers, bosses, friends, family and lovers. For some, creating relationships in the first place is a problem. Shyness and feelings of anxiety or awkwardness prevent some from meeting new…

Public Speaking and Performance Anxiety

Being in front of an audience and giving a talk, speech or presentation, or performing an activity such as singing, dancing, playing an instrument and even participating in a sport can cause debilitating anxiety as well as intense bodily symptoms—i.e. pounding and racing heart, sweating, shortness of breath, nausea and even vomiting and diarrhea. The…

Phobias

Fears that are very specific to one situation are called specific phobias. Examples include heights, insects, animals, storms, blood, needles and enclosed spaces. Specific phobias are one of the most common anxiety disorders, though they typically don’t pose enough of a problem for people to seek treatment. That’s because people can usually continue to avoid…

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

Obsessive thoughts are best characterized as persistent and unwanted thoughts, images or impulses that keep coming back despite your effort not to have them. They are often unpleasant, distasteful or even repugnant. They can include thoughts of being contaminated by dirt or germs, of harming loved ones, of unwanted sexual thoughts, or feeling responsible for…

Low Self-Esteem

There are numerous reasons why individuals struggle with being assertive. It likely started during childhood. They may have grown up in a household where “children are to be seen and not heard”, where parents may have become angry if children spoke up, or where parents did not demonstrate assertiveness themselves. Ultimately, it’s anxiety and fear…

Insomnia

The inability to fall asleep, stay asleep or return to sleep are features of insomnia. The person suffering from insomnia may experience daytime sleepiness, difficulty with focus and concentration, irritability, anxiety or depression. In some cases the insomnia is a factor related to a psychological condition, such as anxiety, worry, stress or depression. It can…