{"id":82405,"date":"2018-02-15T11:18:41","date_gmt":"2018-02-15T11:18:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/?p=82405"},"modified":"2023-03-12T19:09:23","modified_gmt":"2023-03-12T19:09:23","slug":"what-is-third-wave-therapy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/what-is-third-wave-therapy.htm","title":{"rendered":"What is Third Wave Therapy and “Third Wave CBT”?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"a<\/a>

By: honey-bee<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

by Andrea M. Darcy<\/span><\/p>\n

Psychotherapy is not something that is set in stone.<\/p>\n

Like any field of thought or\u00a0science, psychotherapy is constantly\u00a0changing and being added to. <\/strong><\/p>\n

What is third wave therapy?\u00a0It is the current popular movement in Western psychotherapeutic thought.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

What is a ‘wave’ in psychotherapy?<\/h2>\n

With new research, new ways of working with clients are found.<\/p>\n

Often these new ways of working are in reaction to the popular therapy at the time, and to what is deemed to be limiting with that approach.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

When enough people begin to support and research a new way of approaching psychotherapy, then another movement of therapy arises. Or what some call a ‘wave’.<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The ‘third wave’ in psychotherapeutic thought<\/h2>\n

To date, the main approaches that have emerged since Freud and his ideas of psychoanalysis<\/span><\/a>\u00a0are psychodynamic<\/span><\/a>, humanistic<\/span><\/a>, and cognitive<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n

The third wave we are now seeing is in response to cognitive therapy,<\/strong>\u00a0and it has been in progress for over a decade.\u00a0So it is often called ‘third wave CBT therapy’, as it is an attempt to troubleshoot and progress the tools of cognitive therapy.<\/p>\n

The third wave is a\u00a0movement away from the cognitive focus on what we\u00a0think\u00a0and feel, and towards a focus on how we\u00a0relate\u00a0<\/i>to what we think it\u00a0feel.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

It might sound a subtle shift, but let’s look at<\/strong> what the implications of this shift might be.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Understanding the cognitive\u00a0approach\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n
\"what<\/a>

By: honey-bee<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

Before we\u00a0can\u00a0understand\u00a0what the third wave is, we need to go back a step and understand the cognitive\u00a0approach<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Remember, therapy is not static. So although nowadays cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT)<\/span><\/a> troubleshoots the ways we think, this wasn’t always the case.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It can help here to see therapy as a toolbox. Inside that toolbox you’ll find a\u00a0set of tools, or ‘interventions’. These tools can change, depending on what is found to be most effective. (And when the tools get too different, a new toolbox is required to fit them \u2013 hence a new ‘wave’).\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

With the cognitive approach, the focus was actually originally on<\/strong> looking at changing your behaviours<\/em>. The idea was that it is negative\u00a0behaviours\u00a0that cause us upset, and\u00a0by changing\u00a0behaviours\u00a0then life would get better.\u00a0Behavioural interventions<\/span><\/a> are still a part of CBT therapy.<\/p>\n

But since 1970s the main focus shifted to how we think<\/em>. Maladaptive thinking, or ‘cognitive distortions<\/span><\/a>‘, lead to low moods and dissatisfaction in life.<\/p>\n

The classic CBT way of seeing\u00a0 can therefore now be summed up as\u00a0<\/strong> ‘thoughts lead to feelings lead to\u00a0behaviours’.\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

CBT vs The Third Wave\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

In the last decade, more and more cognitive therapists have been integrating tools that are not about thinking <\/strong>per se. They are more about going beyond just thoughts to a bigger picture.<\/p>\n

These include tools like:<\/p>\n