Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Triangle: Behavior

If you’ve read any of my other posts on the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Triangle, the first paragraph is the same. Feel free to skip down to after the diagram for new content or reread the initial paragraph as a refresher! The Cognitive Behavior Therapy Triangle tells us that our behavior, emotions, and thoughts are deeply intertwined. If one of these elements is out of whack, our whole lives can begin to spiral out of control. On the flipside of that, if we work to improve just one of these factors, there’s a high likelihood for the others to improve as…

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Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Triangle

The Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Triangle tells us that our behavior, emotions, and thoughts are deeply intertwined. If one of these elements is out of whack, our whole lives can begin to spiral out of control. On the flipside of that, if we work to improve just one of these factors, there’s a high likelihood for the others to improve as well. Image source: Worksheets Library To find balance, we must learn to control all three aspects of our lives. For some people, the balance of these factors comes easily. For others, they must actively work at one or more of…

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Introvert’s Guide to Making the Most of a High School or College Reunion

College reunion season is wrapping up, and high school reunions seem to happen at varying times of the year. Whether you just had a reunion or have one coming up, everyone can use some help to make the most of a high school or college reunion. For extroverts, reunions are exhilarating because of the chance to surround oneself with tens, if not hundreds, of familiar faces. Introverts may be equally excited, but just the thought of navigating large event spaces to find friends can be daunting. Everyone can benefit from this guide to making the most of a high school…

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Dismantling Pride: The Importance of Vulnerability

While on rotations, I often take advantage of the opportunity to eat outside. One day last month, when it was finally nice out, I sat on a picnic bench, under the beautiful tree pictured below, to eat my lunch (there’s this bomb food truck outside of the Philadelphia Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) with $4-$6 lunch sandwiches! The frugal queen in me rejoices…but I digress). During this particular lunch break, I thought back to a veteran (I’ll call him Mr. X) I had seen earlier that day. Mr. X said, “I used to be too embarrassed to say I don’t…

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Healing Doesn’t Happen Overnight

Two days into a hospital admission for the treatment of alcohol dependence and detox, a patient of mine wanted to go home. He said that he would be able to handle rehab on his own by attending AA meetings. When he mentioned his desire to leave, many thoughts raced through my mind: Was he having an alcohol craving? Was he bored of the arts and craft activities on the unit? Did he want to go hang out with his friends? Was he missing a significant other? Whatever his thought process, his end goal was clear: he wanted to leave the…

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