Hello there, Claricus!

I was just wondering if anyone had any experience of it?
My first experience with Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) was a year ago while I was enrolled in counseling at the undergraduate university I attended.

What is it like?
Though I loved and love CBT in theory, I didn't particularly enjoy in practice at first! I felt it was 'silly' to have a 'hot thought' journal (which was a journal where I wrote down what specifically my 'irrational' thoughts were, where and when I had those thoughts and what evidence to not only verify but also deny those thoughts).

In retrospect I felt it was 'silly' because I found that many of my bedrock beliefs were, well, silly in and of themselves. Through CBT I recognized that many of my inherent beliefs were really quite outrageous! ='(

I found it all to be quite irritating! Yet at the same time I began to recognize that in those 'irrational' thoughts there was a consistent pattern and subsequent themes.

Did it work for you?

This all depends on how you define 'work for you'! =)

Yes, it did.

First, I had my own qualitative data that allowed me to pin-point what I struggled with at the 'core of my being'! Abandonment. Anger. Dissatisfaction. Loneliness. Trust. Those sorts of things!

Second, I began developing a cognitive skill that has helped me be a more critical thinker and have more faith in my ability to brainstorm ideas and solutions.

But there was an aspect of CBT that didn't work: with my emotion. As I learned emotion is first followed by the thought. The research and my own experience suggests that altering your immediate emotional reactions are EXTREMELY difficult! Thankfully you CAN learn to manage the emotional reaction by 'controlling' your thoughts. That in turn affects how you handle the emotional reaction.

But I had a lot of deeply internalized pain and trauma that no amount of CBT could help. That pain was best recognized and expressed through catharsis and psychodrama. Thankfully I found that safe environment to cry, scream, yell and wail!