Discussion 1

Please view the “Case of Tim” video.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcryfuenp2c

After viewing, please answer the following questions:

1. What are the key characteristics of cognitive therapy that distinguish it from other therapy approaches?
2. What is the role of the client/therapist relationship from the cognitive therapist’s point of view?
3. What are some cognitive behavioral techniques used with Tim in his therapy session?
4. If you were to continue working with Tim as his counselor, what specific cognitive behavioral techniques might you use?
5. What goals would you have in mind for Tim?

Please include in your answer some of the following “cognitive” terminology: internal dialogue, irrational beliefs, coping-skills program, stress inoculation, unconditional “shoulds,” absolutistic “musts,” faulty assumptions, automatic thinking, self-evaluating, self-sustaining, schema restructuring, cognitive distortions/errors, autosuggestion, blame, arbitrary inferences, A-B-C theory, Socratic questioning, distortion of reality, disputing irrational beliefs, over generalization, magnification and minimization, polarized thinking, cognitive restructuring.

Discussion 2

1. Share a time when you wrote or said something that was interpreted, or perceived, incorrectly by the recipient of your message. What do you feel might have caused your message to be interpreted incorrectly? Explain.

2. As you move forward in school and work, what strategies provided in the textbook (Chapter 11) might you leverage to ensure your communications are clear and accurately interpreted? Explain.

3. Finally, how important will communication be in your specific career path and in achieving your academic mission statement

RESPOND TO TIFFANY, Brandon, Anna and Shannon by Asking  RELEVANT QUESTIONS

Tiffany post

I was an administrative assistant for a large (800 units) apartment complex for 3 years… Given my background in Customer Service/Sales, I had no idea how to function as an administrative assistant.  Part of my responsibilities was to create and send the majority of correspondence to all residents.

Initially, it seemed like I got everything wrong, because the wording, jargon, and legalities of property management.  Since I didn’t have any examples of sample letters I had to “wing it”.  Needless to say, every time I sent correspondence out, the calls were soon to follow, whether it was because I didn’t have the date and time for an occurrence, or the building/apartment number listed, etc. 

I often wondered to myself what’s the big deal, but then over time, I realized it was a HUGE breakdown in communication within someone’s place of residence… No matter how nice I could smooth someone over with my customer services, it doesn’t take away the multiple feelings of anxiety that I may have caused individuals simply by not giving enough information.

Once I got the hang of giving detailed information to the community and individuals about their home/community, my job became 10x’s easier and the Residents seemed much more happier.  Success came with me brainstorming, re-reading what I had written, and making the necessary revisions.  

As a student, I understand brainstorming will be my best friend, before submitting my papers, and before I communicate with my Professors. This way I can have a clear and open dialogue with my and not have to forget anything.

I believe as a family therapist who deals with addiction that communication is the ONLY way I will be successful, with that said, I feel like I need to learn multiple styles of communication so that I can be relatable to my Clients.

Brandon post

There was a time when I was in a high school creative writing class that the final message for a paper I wrote was completely misinterpreted. We were given a very open-ended assignment to write a story with a message, that’s it no guidelines outside of a clear message being present. To summarize the story, I wrote for the class it was a dinner party murder mystery. There was the initial victim and the seven remaining suspects, each were representative of one of the seven deadly sins. In the end all the guests died except for the woman representing envy because she eventually put aside her jealousy towards other characters and focused on her own talents and cunning, and thus able to solve the mystery and escape. It was supposed to be a message of overcoming yourself as an obstacle and redemption. My instructor, however missed my message and felt I arbitrarily choose a character to survive, or maybe I was implying envy was not a sin to the same degree as the others. I came to realize that the reason my instructor missed the message was due to the lack of time and description I used when conveying this change to the reader. If I had drawn more attention to the character’s change or started peppering hints of the change to come sooner in the story, I could have conveyed the message much more clearly. 

I feel that reviewing my writing has always been my weak spot. When I write I usually take my time and plan out each sentence before moving on to the next, reviewing as I go. This helps me catch small spelling and grammar errors before I move on, but I can still miss gaps in the overarching story or argument in trying to make. Since I utilize a lot of energy revising each sentence as I go, combing through the entire paper again can seem daunting while also less rewarding since I’m usually confident I don’t have many spelling or grammar errors. A good middle ground for me would most likely be to instead review my work paragraph by paragraph, instead of sentence by sentence or going back to reread an entire essay in one sitting. 

Communication is essential in every career path and my desired field of computer science is no exception. Communicating is key in making sure that everyone working on one project is moving efficiently towards one larger goal with no errors. Collaboration and clarity are imperative in ensuring programs function smoothly. In my academic career I’m sure reaching out to professors and academic peers will prove invaluable to my success and advancement towards earning my degree. It’s a resource I’ve sorely neglected in the past. 

Anna cox post

1. What are the key characteristics of cognitive therapy that distinguish it from other therapy approaches?

Cognitive therapy focuses on the here and now. It does not look to the past or focus too far into the future, the present is what is important, what can we change now? How can we alter our current perception? How can we help ourselves in our current situation? Cognitive therapy is a problem-solving technique based on achieving specific goals. 

 2.What is the role of the client/therapist relationship from the cognitive therapist’s point of view?

The relationship from the cognitive therapist’s point of view is meant to make the client feel comfortable enough to express detailed behaviors, bad habits and negative though processes they may be caught up in. The therapist is meant to assist the client in working through those and find realistic goals and solutions.  

3. What are some cognitive behavioral techniques used with Tim in his therapy session?

Tim’s therapist used a sentence completion technique and used detailed descriptors to help Tim pinpoint his issues. He made Tim question his thought process and the use of negative language towards himself like the “losers” comment. The therapist questioned him on what he has currently tried and why he thinks it isn’t working. He then asked Tim to identify his largest issue and found ways to tackle them and set specific goals and a clear cut course to achieve those. He also asked him journal for when his negative thoughts popped up and to use cost benefit analysis and percentage analysis to combat his negativity. 

4. If you were to continue working with Tim as his counselor, what specific cognitive behavioral techniques might you use?

I would encourage Tim to continue to journal, but not only focus on altering his negative thought process, and use the cost benefit and percentage analysis. I would additionally ask his to use stress reduction and relaxation techniques when he feels too overwhelmed or anxious. 

5. What goals would you have in mind for Tim?

Tim’s largest issues are his lack of fulfillment in his career and his single life. I would set up goals like apply for 3 jobs a week that Tim feels he is a good candidate for and to schedule one social/group activity outside of his regular hangout with his friends (i.e. rock climbing, yoga, amateur group sports, etc.). These should help Tim to actively socialize and meet new people which will assist with his self esteem, this is turn could encourage new job opportunities and ways for Tim to network along with his applications. 

Shannon post

• What are the key characteristics of cognitive therapy that distinguish it from other therapy approaches?

The key characteristics of CBT is knowing how to separate rational thoughts from irrational thoughts.  Learning how to change your beliefs.  It teaches people not to listen to the “shoulds” in life and focus on the now.  CBT works on changing the client’s pattern of thinking.  Instead of focusing on the negative should have or must, they focus on the now.  What is the rational now not the belief.

• What is the role of the client/therapist relationship from the cognitive therapist’s point of view?

The therapist is responsible for teaching the clients to see all the unconditional “shoulds” that they have in their lives and how to turn them around.  A second thing the therapist should do is to teach the client how to dispute irrational thoughts. Finally, the therapist is teaching the client how to use rational thinking in place of irrational thinking.

• What are some cognitive behavioral techniques used with Tim in his therapy session?

The first one I noticed was sentence completion.  This forced Tim to talk about what his belief was about why he was sad.  It also brought about his belief about himself.  He felt he was such a looser.  Next the therapist made him see his thoughts as irrational.  Tim admitted that not everyone without a “good” job was losers.  They also created a problem list and prioritized it, so they knew what was most important to focus on first.  They were goal setting.

• If you were to continue working with Tim as his counselor, what specific cognitive behavioral techniques might you use?

I would continue working on his problem list and meeting his goals and making new ones along the way.  I would also want him to keep a journal about every time he felt negative feelings toward himself.  We would work on breaking his habit of saying should.  Show him how to focus on right now not on his future.  What can he be doing right now to change where he is in life?

• What goals would you have in mind for Tim?

He would need to continue seeking a new job and apply to a new job every week.  He would need to question himself every time he feels or says anything negative about himself.  Continue to journal about his negative thoughts.  What is he feeling at the time of the thought?