Integrated living: faith + CBT
Photo by Sigmund on UnsplashOne of the missing puzzle pieces for my life was not understanding my brain.
I am going to start a series on Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT), which for me has been life changing. This therapy has empowered me to take some risks and make some choices that I have always felt subconsciously hindered in making. One of my first thoughts to this exposure of the ADHD brain is, “Oh, I’m a type?” I was diagnosed in May with severe ADHD and began therapy the following September. Added to my list of favorite people groups are Psychology PhD students. I only know 2, but they were both so empathetic, practical and helpful! For me, what I needed was brain order help. Please forgive me for my barbaric attempt to explain all of this—I am an admitted caveman when it comes to mental health, but thankfully, I am learning new language and gaining understanding and appreciation for my counseling friends and their willingness to train and wade into the deep waters with their patience—THANK YOU. And for the psychologists doing brain work, wow!
It has been a relief to find an avenue of help. The first step in the session was a survey called Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale Symptom Checklist. I had to answer these 18 questions during each of my 19 visits. Apparently, there are patterns of thinking for Adult ADHD folk and this CBT seeks to identify, expose and re-program the negative and detrimental patterns of thinking. If I remember correctly, she asked me a few questions and then for the next session, curated a therapy course using the self reporting. Through this workbook and a listening and response posture, we hammered out many areas that needed help. It is basically all the practical bits of living that are not apparent to executive function challenged people! It was amazing! She often commented how I was her most open and zealous client, and she ended up using me in some presentation for her PhD. Yeah, she did. I was ready and willing and amazed and I STILL AM!!
Our first point of entry was using the calendar. I already had a great one, but it sat mostly empty because I forgot to write things down or was inconsistent or got overwhelmed and confused on how to use it. I had researched “best graduate school calendar” and came up with the Passion Planner. That was a great first step, and I was sort of using it. My psychologist taught me how to use it more effectively— I am looking at the first paper she gave me—Chapter 4 The Foundation: Organizing and Planning Skills. She wrote:
(Put) dates, events, appointments, due dates in calendar
(Create) master Task List in Blank Pages
BRING IT EVERYWHERE!
What I realized throughout our sessions was that prior counseling, along with my faith journey AND this therapy would help me smooth out some rough spots in my life. As I prayed and talked to God about all of this, He once told me the calendar was a weapon. Now, THAT I understand. I think the Holy Spirit is the best advocate and counselor, and He will speak to you in a way you can understand. However, I believe in the dynamic work of God and people—it’s a partnership, not “all or nothing”. “Both/and” is fascinating and new to me.
As for my psychologist, we dealt with my symptoms and then built skills accordingly. The work book is called Mastering Your Adult ADHD: A Cognitive-Behavioral Treatment Program, Client Workbook (Treatments That Work) 2nd Edition by Steven A. Safren (Author), Susan E. Sprich Carol A. Perlman. I think the accountability of a trained expert is huge; however, I know not everyone can do that. I was fortunate to have a student discount and access to a stellar program through my university. Turns out I had a lot of missing puzzle pieces and I will be writing about the process and sharing just in case it’s helpful for others. I have said this before and I will say it again: no, everyone does NOT HAVE ADHD. You might overlap in symptoms, but brain research has proven everyone’s brain is not created equal. Although it hurt my ego that I am a “type,” I have found great relief in all of this research and implementation of strategies and skills have been life giving, and I hope helpful to my family, friends and community.
