Overcoming Depression - A CBT Approach

Do you find yourself grappling with feelings of depression, like millions of others across the globe? This program is designed to give you many of the tools you will need to overcome the difficult experience of depression. Based on the principles of one of the most effective, research-supported treatments for depression--Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)--this program will provide you with the knowledge and skills necessary to:

• Address and modify unhelpful negative thought patterns
• Manage tricky emotions often associated with depression, like sadness, shame, anxiety guilt, and anger
• Relax your body and mind
• Re-engage with the activities that bring you a sense of joy and accomplishment
• Reconnect with the people in your life

With targeted lessons, video summaries, and interactive activities, Resilify's CBT for Depression program can be a powerful tool on your journey of healing.

Program Sessions

Session 1: What is Depression?

Overview: Learn about what depression looks like and how the skills and tools of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy can help.

Activities: Monitor your mood, sleep, and tricky thought patterns with our helpful logs.

Session 2: Thoughts, Actions, Emotions

Overview: Our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors all interact with one another in ways that can feel distressing when we are depressed. In this session, learn specifically about how our thoughts influence what we feel and how we act.

Activities: Use the records provided to track automatic negative thoughts and generate other, more balanced thoughts.

Session 3: Cognitive Restructuring and Thought Records

Overview: Learn how to address automatic negative thoughts using the thought record, a helpful CBT tool that lets us critically examine the unhelpful thoughts we have.

Activities: Put this session's content to the test by completing your own thought record and developing other ways to think about a stressful situation.

Session 4: Relaxation

Overview: Depression can put our bodies and minds into a prolonged state of stress. Learn how to relax using different research-based techniques.

Activities: Try out a few of the relaxation techniques discussed in this session, including progressive muscle relaxation and mindfulness meditation.

Session 5: Behavioral Activation

Overview: Depression can cause us to lose interest in activities that were once important to us. Learn how to reclaim enjoyable activities one step at a time.

Activities: Use the exercises in this section to identify re-engage with and track your engagement progress in activities that are meaningful for you.

Session 6: Social Support and Depression

Overview: When we feel depressed, we can feel the overwhelming urge to isolate. In this session, learn about the importance of social support in our emotional wellbeing, and how to create more of that support in your life.

Activities: Use the activities in this section to generate ways to improve social support in your life and reflect on the people to whom you can turn no matter how you are feeling.

Session 7: Social Skills

Overview: It can be hard to interact with people when we are feeling sad, anxious, or otherwise are just not up to it. Use the information in this session to practice engaging with others and getting our needs met through respective assertiveness.

Activities: Use the activities in this session to help you manage conflict and practice putting your social skills to the test.

References

• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Depression — Mick Power.
• The Role of Nonspecific Factors in Cognitive-Behavior Therapy for Depression — Stephen S. Ilardi, W. Edward Craighead.
• Practice Guideline for the Treatment of Patients with Major Depressive Disorder — American Psychiatric Association. 2010.
• Combined pharmacotherapy and psychological treatment for depression: A systematic review — Pampallona S, Bollini P, Tibaldi G, Kupelnick B, Munizza C. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2004;61:714-9.
• Effects of treatment duration and severity of depression on the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral and psychodynamic-interpersonal psychotherapy — Shapiro DA, Barkham M, Rees A, Hardy GE, Reynolds S, Startup M. J Consult Clin Psychol. 1994;62:522-34.