You learn to recognize habitual thinking errors . Recording thoughts in a diary can help. Effectiveness Cognitive therapies are the most heavily researched forms of psychotherapy. In 1989, researcher Keith Dobson analyzed 28 small studies and found cognitive therapy to be more effective in the treatment of depression than behavioral therapy, other types of psychotherapy or drug treatment, or no treatment. Stanley is directing a clinical trial at UT-Houston to test cognitive behavioral therapy on older people with generalized anxiety disorder.
Pervasive worry is very common in older adults.
While it's perfectly normal to worry, she explains, cognitive therapy can help individuals recognize excessive worry and regain their ability to function.