What Is The Best Therapy To Set, Achieve and Keep New Year Resolutions With 7 Essential Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) Tools
It’s hard to believe we are in a new year already. It’s a fresh start and hopefully, a new beginning for the world and everyone in it. With the new year, many people ask what is the best therapy 2022 has to offer? I am biased as a Cognitive Behavior Therapist, but I truly believe CBT can be a great fit for many people looking to set, achieve and keep new year resolutions.
Every turn of a new calendar year provides us with an opportunity to start over. To be better than we were the year before. This is the time of year when we constantly hear, “What are your new years resolutions?” from basically everyone. Setting new years resolutions is a tradition that many believe is the marker of a new beginning. But, keeping resolutions is a different story.
Life gets in the way and our good intentions of setting new goals for ourselves falls by the wayside. We get busy with life, careers, and social obligations. It seems as if no matter how hard we try, our resolutions are absolved before they even begin.
It doesn’t have to be this way, however and this is where checking out the best therapy 2022 has to give is a good idea because CBT can both help you change at the new year and keep those changes for years to come
Thanks to Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT), you can learn how you can set your new years resolutions and actually keep them through various tools.
What Is Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT)?
It is a type of talk therapy that looks at the connection between our thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. All of these can get in the way of keeping our goals and living a balanced life which brings us joy.
1. You’ll See The Connection Between Thoughts, Emotions, And Behaviors
Wanting to lose weight or exercise is a common goal most people set. But how many times have you tried this in the past? If you have tried (then given up, like we all do) you may think “I haven’t succeeded yet, why would it work this year?” which then makes you feel bad.
Then, you just give up, hopeless. Your thought sets the negative reaction off, which influences your emotions and eventually your behavior. Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) helps to challenge the negative thoughts you have so this doesn’t happen. Understanding the link between your thoughts, feelings and behaviors allows you to then learn tools to change and challenge your thoughts and behaviors.
2. Journaling Helps Too
Writing is a great way to be intentional with your goals and has been shown to be a helpful aid in healing. In CBT, journaling is often used to help clients list the negative and unhelpful thoughts and how these thoughts made them feel or behave. Writing your goals down with intention helps you to remember what they are and every time you take a small step towards that goal, it can help you stay focused and motivated.
3. Preventing Avoidance
If your goal was to lose weight, you are likely wanting to go to the gym or work out. You may start off strong, but then do you find excuses not to do it? Cognitive Behavior Therapy helps you with this by teaching you skills of how to not procrastinate and get the things you want done. You’ll in turn establish habits that work for you and your schedule, without feeling as it’s a burden or a chore.
4. You’ll Learn Stress Reduction
We’re always so busy. And stressed. When we have both of these things going on, sticking to our resolutions is very hard. Who has time for these goals when we have way too much going on? Actually, you do!
By learning how to manage your stress levels, it will feel less overwhelming to stick to those new year goals. Often, stress is the biggest enemy and preventer of us getting anything done.
5. What Are Your Assumptions?
Why do you want to accomplish this goal? What are your assumptions on why you may or may not do it? Working with a Cognitive Behavior Therapist (CBT Therapist) helps you to counteract the negative and unhelpful beliefs you have in your head about yourself. Just as stress is our biggest enemy, we often are our own worst enemies, too.
6. You’ll Learn How To Break Things Down Into Manageable Steps
We set one or two big goals for ourselves in the new year. And then what? A Cognitive Behavior Therapist (CBT Therapist) can teach you the skills and set smaller, more attainable goals, leading up to the bigger one.
7. Your Behaviors Will Change
Over time, you will notice that your behaviors change. You’ll think better about yourself, emotionally feel better, and your behaviors will reflect this, as well.
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Click to learn more about Online Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT). If you are having trouble sticking to new years goals, working with an online CBT therapist can help. If you’d like to discuss how the best therapy 2022 (in my opinion!) can help you make life lasting changes. Contact my Honolulu or London office with any questions, or book yourself in for a CBT Test Drive.
. Good luck in the new year!
