“Cognitive–existential psychotherapy” is an approach that integrates cognitive and existential theories.
Helping people facing a serious threat of death, sensory–motor paralysis, human catastrophes, tragedies and natural disasters — or any situation in which a person’s core meanings are threatened or lost — calls for psychotherapy approaches that can effectively help them rebuild the meaning of their lives and adjust, effectively and realistically, to the consequences of such enormous losses.
Being unable to rebuild meaning effectively can lead to severe, lasting depression and to a sharp decline, or complete collapse, in quality of life. The onset or worsening of psychosomatic illness, low morale and listlessness, generalised anxiety, phobias of many kinds, and a severe loss of motivation are among the consequences of being unable to rebuild threatened meanings.
Cognitive–existential psychotherapy can be seen as a unique, integrated approach that draws on the benefits of “combining cognitive theory and existential theory” in understanding the pathology of anxiety and depressive disorders.
The approach assumes that cognitive therapy techniques can not only correct dysfunctional schemas, negative automatic thoughts and cognitive errors, and so ease the psychological distress and injury of people struck by tragedy, but can also address existential concerns — such as dread of death, uncertainty, meaninglessness and loneliness — which other psychotherapy approaches have generally not answered well, and which lie behind much harmful anxiety.
Dr Bahman Bahmani, PhD in counselling, associate professor and faculty member, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences
Moeen Counselling Centre has run many workshops on cognitive–existential psychotherapy. To hear about upcoming workshops, please contact the centre.
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