Treatment · CBT

Cognitive behavioural therapy: grip on what you think and do

What you think shapes how you feel and what you do. CBT is the most extensively researched psychological treatment in the world and forms the basis of most trajectories at Sati.

What is CBT?

Thoughts, feelings and behaviour are connected

Cognitive behavioural therapy starts from a simple but powerful idea: it is not the situation itself, but the meaning you give it that determines how you feel. Two people receive the same critical email. One shrugs it off, the other lies awake at night because of it. The difference lies in the thoughts the situation triggers.

With issues such as stress, anxiety or low mood, those thoughts have often become distorted: harsher, darker or more fearful than reality justifies. And because you start acting on them (avoiding, postponing, pushing through, putting yourself last), your thoughts and your behaviour keep each other trapped in a vicious circle.

In CBT we map out that circle precisely and break it on two fronts at once: you learn to examine and adjust your thinking patterns, and you try out new behaviour in small, achievable steps. Not by talking yourself into positivity, but by learning to look at yourself and the situation more honestly and more realistically.

What does it help with?

CBT is effective for, among other things

Worrying, anxiety and panic
Low mood and depressive symptoms
Stress and early burnout
Negative self-image and perfectionism
Difficulty setting boundaries
Sleep problems caused by rumination and tension

The approach

What CBT looks like in the sessions

Mapping out

We dissect concrete situations from your week: what happened, what did you think, what did you feel, what did you do? This makes visible which patterns are keeping your symptoms going.

Examining

You learn to question your automatic thoughts critically: is this actually true? What would I say to a friend who thought this? Which facts support it, and which speak against it?

Experimenting

The real change happens outside the session. With targeted behavioural experiments you test old beliefs in practice and experience that things can be different.

Consolidating

You make the new way of thinking and doing your own, so that you can apply it without me later on. We finish with a personal plan to prevent relapse.

What does the science say? CBT is the most researched form of psychotherapy worldwide, with hundreds of controlled studies. For anxiety disorders and depressive symptoms, CBT is the first-choice treatment in the Dutch mental healthcare guidelines. Delivered online, CBT proves just as effective as in person.

Frequently asked questions

About CBT

Is CBT not just "positive thinking"?

No, rather the opposite. CBT is not about talking yourself into cheerfulness, but about learning to think more realistically. Sometimes the realistic thought is precisely: "this really is unpleasant". The difference is that you are no longer stuck in automatic doom scenarios or an unjustly harsh view of yourself.

Will I get homework?

Yes, and that is good news: it is precisely the exercises between sessions that make CBT so effective. Think of keeping track of situations and thoughts, or a small behavioural experiment. It usually takes 15 to 30 minutes a week and we always tailor it to what is feasible in your life.

How quickly will I notice an effect?

Most people notice a difference after 4 to 6 sessions: more insight, more grip, the first changes in behaviour. A full trajectory usually takes 8 to 14 sessions. We evaluate regularly, so we can adjust course when needed.

Take the first step today.

Sign up directly for an intake, or start with a free 15-minute introductory call. I will personally get back to you within two working days. Usually you can start within a week.

I work solo and take on a limited number of new clients each month

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