TEAM CBT
Dr. Burns explains
TEAM CBT is a new, promising approach to cognitive-behavioral therapy developed by CBT pioneer, David Burns, M.D., professor emeritus at Stanford Universty. Dr. Burns noticed that a significant subset of patients would get stuck in the process, would “yes-but” him, and in general would not improve despite best efforts with traditional CBT. TEAM is an acronym for Testing, Empathy, Agenda Setting (Anticipation and Assessment of Resistance), and Methods. Below, Dr. Burns explains each of these elements:
T - Testing
E - Empathy
Empathy refers to the therapeutic alliance, an essential component of any therapy. TEAM presents simple, effective ways of creating and maintaining a therapeutic alliance with any patient; even those oftentimes dismissed as “resistant,” “difficult, or “borderline,” etc.
A - Agenda
Setting is the core of the TEAM model. It provides therapists high-speed methods to identify workable therapeutic agendas and navigate resistance to change. At its core, TEAM agenda setting recognizes that any symptom is also a “solution.” Recognizing this dual nature of clinical presentations sets the foundation for meaningful change.
M - Methods
During our four-day training, 50 cutting-edge methods will be presented, and 10 will be presented in detail. Frequent role-plays and opportunities to practice will consolidate attendees’ learning. Dr. Burns urges us to “fail as fast as you can,” thus moving quickly and smoothly to the next method to find that one that will be effective.