Cognitive therapy: Pros and Cons

I love cognitive therapy for some reasons. The most basic reason is that it works at the level of cognition first. I think cognitive level is the one that therapists should work on because it is so rational that our thoughts affect our behaviours through affecting our feelings. This is the main reasoning in cognitive therapy indeed.

So as Aaron Beck stated it first: our thoughts affect our feelings and they determine how we behave.

It may sound a little too simple and obvious at first but the truth is sometimes very simple. Automatic thoughts are unavoidable but not unchangeable. They can be altered through working on the core beliefs. This all sound very rational too me.

Also I like it being to the point. If you have a specific problem (like a specific phobia) it does wonders in reasonable time.

Of course it has some aspects I do not like much. It is too strict in theory and needs to be balanced in that way with a flexible attitude of the therapist.

I believe cognitive therapy is very powerful for specific problems but it would be better if used in an eclectic approach in some cases. Many people are suffering from specific things like having panic attacks or having a some kind of phobia. Cognitive therapy is just the right choice for those.

However, there are many people who wants to be in therapy because they want to know more of themselves without having a specific problem to be dealt with. At that point cognitive therapy isn't enough by itself. Therefore, I plan to use it with another type of therapy which is called Existential Therapy.
God only knows what will happen in the future but this is the plan for now. :)

Peace...