Internet-Based Cognitive Therapy can Help People Cope with Anxiety

Cognitive behaviour therapy via internet can help people cope with anxiety, a new study shows.

The study, conducted by researchers at the Karolinska Institutet, has found that exposure-based CBT was better than active psychological treatment with stress management techniques for the treatment of anxiety.

CBT is a type of psychotherapeutic treatment that helps people cope with depression and anxiety. The technique lets people understand the thoughts and feelings that affect behavior. The treatment lets patients modify their thoughts and behavior to accept problems and find solutions. Under CBT, people are encouraged to talk or write about their feelings and thoughts.

Exposure therapy is part of cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy and is often used to treat people suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and phobias. In this technique, people are encouraged to gradually face their fears instead of hiding from them.

Previous research has shown that people are more likely to stick to CBT when the treatment is conducted via phone rather than face-to-face.

In the current study, the researchers at the Department of Clinical Neuroscience of the Karolinska Institutet compared the efficacy of exposure-based internet treatment with other treatments that encouraged patients to practice stress management techniques. Around 158 people took part in the study. All participants had access to therapists via e-mail. The treatment lasted for about 12 weeks.

The researchers found that internet-based CBT can lower health anxiety.

"More people can be treated since the treatment time per patient is significantly lower than for traditional treatment. Internet treatment is independent of physical distance and, in time, this means that treatment can be administered to people who live in rural areas or in places where there is no outpatient psychiatry with access to psychologists with CBT expertise," said PhD and licensed psychologist Erik Hedman, lead author of the study, according to a news release.

The study is published in the British Journal of Psychiatry.