"First, I want to briefly discuss this form of therapy that is widely used these days. It is called Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). It is what psychologists call an empirically evidence-based therapy. What that means is it has been widely tested by using real people in controlled groups and uncontrolled groups. To this day, it appears to be the most effective type of therapy. It is solution-focused and usually short-term therapy. I break this type of therapy down to this. "Cognitive therapy is when you purposely think about what you are thinking about and how the thoughts affect your emotions, moods, and behavior." So, our emotions are always preceded by our thoughts. A Christian counselor I saw in 1990 told me, "You cannot have a feeling until you first have a thought." So, in my therapy, I attempt to help people get better control of their thoughts. With the intensity of your thought comes the intensity of your feelings. I have likened it to someone on a galloping horse that seems to be out of control. The rider needs to pull on the horse's reigns to feel more control and to slow the horse down. In a similar way, I teach people to "pull on the reigns" of their thoughts.

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The foundation for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is the ABC Model. It goes as follows.

A stands for activating event, "or something just happened or could happen in the future."

B stands for belief, "or what you thought about what happened or could happen."

C stands for consequences of feelings/actions, "or what you felt and possibly did after your thought."

--So, something happens. You immediately have a thought about it. Then you feel your thought and it influences your actions. It is very elementary. If you think sad thoughts you will feel sad. Think sad thoughts for a prolonged period of time and you will experience depression. Of course, the same goes for fear--anxiety, anger--rage, and hopeful thoughts bring a determination to live.