psychological therapy for SZ: CBT

Question 1

how many sessions does CBT take place over

Answer 1

5- 20 sessions in groups or individually

Question 2

how can CBT help a client

Answer 2

helps client make sense of how their irrational cognitions impact on their feelings and behaviours

Question 3

how can a therapist help someone with auditory hallucinations (e.g: hears demonic voices that want to hurt them)

Answer 3

if therapist can convince them the voice comes from a malfunctioning speech centre in their brain and it can’t hurt them it will be less scary

this can help people cope with the symptoms of SZ and improve their ability to function adequately

Question 4

what is normalisation

Answer 4

where a therapist teaches the client that their symptoms are just an extension of ordinary experience

(people hearing voices can be helped by telling them hearing voices is just an extension of ordinary experience)

Question 5

what can a therapist teach the client to help distract them from their irrational thoughts

Answer 5

use self distraction techniques to distract them from irrational thoughts

(e.g: positive self talk, turning up the tv)

Question 6

how can delusions be tested during CBT

Answer 6

delusions can be challenged by reality testing a person with SZ and the therapist examines the likelihood that beliefs are true

Question 7

what was the case example used by Turkington et al (2004) to describe an example of where CBT is used to challenge where a paranoid clients delusions come from

Answer 7

paranoid client: the mafia are observing me and deciding how to kill me

therapist: you are obviously very frightened….. there must be good reason for this

paranoid client: do you think its the mafia?

therapist: it is possibility, but there could be another explanation. How do you know its the mafia