Imagine a medical treatment based on cutting-edge neuroscience.

I bet what came to mind wasn't doing double dares and playing detective with your diary.

But these are just what the doctor orders for treating a range of psychological disorders

like anxiety, depression, OCD, PTSD, insomnia, and even more, with this type of psychotherapy

called cognitive behavioral therapy.

Welcome back to savvy psychologist. I'm your host Dr. Jade Wu.

Every week I'll help you meet life's challenges

with evidence-based research,

a sympathetic ear, and zero judgment.

Today we take a behind-the-scenes tour of cognitive behavioral therapy,

or CBT for short, to see how and why it works.

Recently I was reminiscing with a grad school friend about our clinical training.

We were sharing our most memorable CBT moments.

Mine was singing the alphabet song at the top of my lungs with my patient

at a busy Boston Street corner.

Hers was taking a stroll with her patient who was also walking a banana on a leash.

Yes, you heard it right. The patient had a banana on a leash and he was walking it like a dog. What do these totally bizarre

activities have to do with psychotherapy? How is this supposed to help anyone?

Well rest assured both of these patients made huge improvements in tackling their social anxiety

disorder.

By the end of treatment, they were finally feeling comfortable in their own skin.

Of course, bananas and off-case singing weren't the only ingredients.

...