Rational Emotive Cognitive Behavioural Therapy was developed
by Dr Albert Ellis in the 1950's and is one of the most established
of the cognitive behavioural therapies. RECBT is an active directive
and goal-oriented psychotherapy. It is philosophically aligned
with the Greek Stoicists & specifically Epictetus who wrote
"Men are disturbed not by events themselves, but by the views
which they take of them". RECBT proposes that it is largely our
thinking in the face of life's adversities that creates our emotional
and behavioural responses. In other words, think healthily and you
will be more likely to feel and behave in healthy ways. Think unhealthily
and you will be more likely to feel and behave in unhealthy ways.
With an emphasis on the present, RECBT teaches us to identify
unhealthy thinking and develop healthy alternatives to achieve
our emotional and behavioural goals.