Posted by Thrud on May 23, 2001, at 7:23:23
In reply to Re: It doesn't get any better than this?, posted by Cam W. on May 23, 2001, at 2:44:09
Hi Cam,
I tried very hard at cognitive therapy and could easily use the disputational techniques to correct aberrant thoughts when they caused me discomfort. Unfortunately(?) I did not have many aberrant thoughts to dispute!!! When I asked myself why I was feeling depressed or anxious, the honest answer was nearly always, "no reason". I do not ruminate or entertain automatic trains of thought. However I do feel extremely ill within two weeks of ceasing medfication, regardless of the circumstances I am in. I could make minor changes in mood through cognitive therapy but the big baseline changes have only been made through medication. And this really sucks because of the side effects of medication
:-(
I fully agree with you that few people discipline themselves to make cognitive therapy work; it takes much effort and practise. However sometimes lay people and experts alike tend to think that cognitive therapy is superior because, through discipline, the patient has "earned" their relief from depression and that ADs tend to be cop-outs. The flip side to that argument is the implicit notion that patients have in a sense "earned" their depression as well.Perhaps you will agree that you meet many people who clearly have distortions in their thinking and yet are not depressed and therefore not regarded as ill? Taking an effective AD while maintaining cognitive distortions might still take someone from being "ill" to being "well" in the eyes of society.
Anyway, I am not arguing with you. It's just that I've had my fair share of inquisitions from people trying to find the cognitive distortions at the root of my illness and coming to the conclusion that either I was either deceptive or simply would not open up to them.
Ah well. Cognitive therapy or ADs, the quest for normalcy and peace continues!Thrud
poster:Thrud
thread:63214
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010522/msgs/63968.html