Psychotherapy is one of the main treatments used to treat anxiety disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder, generalized anxiety disorder and obsessive compulsive disorder. According to the Mayo Clinic and University of Maryland Medical Center, cognitive-behavioral therapy is the most common type of psychotherapy and one of the most effective treatments for anxiety disorders. Within cognitive-behavioral therapy, there are many techniques and treatments used.
Recognize Irrational Thoughts
Cognitive-behavioral therapy is based on the notion that thoughts influence a person's feelings, which then influence the person's behaviors. The first treatment used in cognitive behavioral therapy is identifying and combating irrational, anxious thoughts. For instance, a therapist would help the client list irrational thoughts that make the person anxious. Someone suffering from obsessive-compulsive disorder might have an irrational thought such as, "I must wash my hands 30 times before they are clean." The therapist and client would work on discussing how that thought is irrational and what really needs to happen for the client's hands to be clean.
Homework Assignments
Another form of treatment cognitive-behavioral therapists use is homework assignments. No one can change her life and mental health issues by sitting and talking with a therapist for one hour. The person must be able to apply techniques learned in therapy every day to overcome anxiety disorders. Therefore, therapists will give clients weekly homework assignments. Someone with an obsessive-compulsive disorder might be given the assignment to wash her hands only 20 times instead of 30 times. The next week the therapist might instruct her to wash her hands 10 times and continue reducing the number until they get down to one hand-washing.
Relaxation Training
Therapists use another form of treatment called relaxation training to help clients combat anxiety when it arises. A therapist might teach a client how to use deep breathing or progressive muscle relaxation, which involves tensing and relaxing each muscle. These techniques are practiced during therapy sessions and then used on a regular basis.
Exposure Treatment
Exposure treatment is used when a client suffers from a specific phobia. The therapist and client take small steps together to expose the client to the experience or item that he fears. For instance, if a client is extremely afraid of heights, a therapist might begin by talking to the client about heights. Then the therapist might instruct the client to close his eyes and imagine that he is on a rooftop looking down. In the safety of the session, the therapist uses relaxation techniques to help the client relax while imagining this fearful situation. The client might then go up one flight of stairs, then two flights of stairs and continue this process until the client faces his fear.
Modeling Treatment
For this psychotherapy treatment, the client watches someone approach and handle the feared object such as a spider. Usually the client watches this on a videotape. After watching it a few times, the client tries to model or repeat the behavior of the person she watched.
