WHAT IS… COMPASSION FOCUSED THERAPY ?

Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT), developed by Paul Gilbert, is a type of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. It takes its definition from the Buddhist tradition which believes that compassion is having a sensitivity to suffering in self and others while having a drive to prevent and ease the suffering. Compassion can flow in three directions: that we have towards others, compassion that we receive from others and compassion that we direct at ourselves.

Gilbert developed CFT as a response to research showing that individuals who had elevated levels of shame or self-criticism, struggled to develop compassionate thoughts about themselves when taking part in traditional therapy. Thus, Gilbert developed CFT with the aim to help individuals develop a more compassionate inner voice and a kinder self-understanding view of themselves and others. CFT purports that feelings of anxiety, negative self-bias, anger etc. stem from a dysregulation of the system that responds to threat. Therefore, CFT invites us to understand that our negative self-bias stems from innate biological processes that have been developed through a combination of genetics and environment. CFT, therefore, encourages us to respond to our negative feelings through compassionate behaviours that soothe and regulate our biological systems. CFT’s use of self-compassion is supported by a wide body of research and is also linked to a decrease in interpersonal problems and an increase in quality of life and well-being.

In CFT sessions the therapist will focus on supporting you to develop self-compassion and compassion for others and becoming more open to receiving and accepting compassion from others. The therapist may use imagery, guide compassion thinking exercises, and practice compassionate ways to respond to self-criticism using, all aiming to develop a kinder ‘inner voice’. This will lead to a more compassionate relationship with the self to replace shame, self-criticism and self-doubt. This not only will decrease the negative symptoms of depression and anxiety, but it can also enable us to engage with other types of therapies.

 

We have members in our team who are trained in the approach of compassion focused therapy, therefore if you would like to find out more about this therapy model, or would like to book for an initial consultation, please email info@usintherapy.com for more information.