Tomás Santa Cecilia: «Cognitive-behavioral therapy is very effective»

The anxiety it is one of the most frequent pathologies in the adult population. We live in a society marked by haste, high demands and little time to rest and reflect.

All this is a breeding ground for psychological disorders such as stress or anxiety to appear, that imply that the affected person lives in a permanent state of alert, concern and unrest.

Interview with the psychologist Tomás Santa Cecilia

With the aim of delving into the causes and possible treatments of anxiety, we have talked with Thomas Saint Cecilia, Madrid psychologist with a very distinguished career and who has effectively treated hundreds of clinical cases.

We have not missed the opportunity to learn more about what anxiety is and how we can manage and treat it.

Bertrand Regader: What are the main reasons why people with anxiety problems go to the Psychologist?

Tomás Santa Cecilia: If we consider anxiety as a natural emotional reaction when a person is in a certain situation that constitutes a risk or a demand from the environment, then we can ensure that anxiety becomes a state that affects their well-being, understanding emotional well-being with a state of calm and tranquility, which is what everyone we aspire.

When it comes to a demand from the environment, anxiety remains until we find a way to resolve the demand; for example: finishing a committed task, executing a job that is urgently entrusted to us ...

In other cases, anxiety occurs when we live in a situation of uncertainty, of doubts about what can happen, without it being up to us what to do. A good example is the anxiety that is triggered before a lottery draw or what bingo players feel or other bets.

This emotional state of uncertainty can be paralyzing for many people. For others, on the other hand, it can be a challenge, this being one of the most important differences. For this reason, it is important to determine when the demands of the environment, our thoughts, desires, tastes or expectations represent an obstacle to advance well in the workplace, family, social or personal. It is in this moment where we can count on a Psychology Professional.

Many times it is assumed that anxiety always comes from outside the subject, from the environment. In what ways do we tend to feed anxiety through our actions and thoughts?

As I have commented previously, if we take into account that anxiety we define it as a feeling, an emotion and this depends largely on how we interpret the environment and how we think about the situation we are experiencing, then we can say that it is very important to know how to interpret our relationship with him in a healthy way. half.

The healthy way to do it is established by our value system, our beliefs and, ultimately, by our learning history.

In your opinion, do you tend to assume that long-term anxiety burnout is normal? Lack of awareness that it is a real problem that deserves to be addressed?

Without a doubt, we live in a very complicated social moment, we have strenuous work rhythms. Once we're done at work, we get in the car and, we get stuck. Later in the supermarket, later we get home and we have to start with family commitments: homework, dinners, baths, etc.

And it is at the end of the night or in the wee hours of the morning when they decide to rest, many watching television: an action movie, a frenzied debate about football or politics; no matter the theme, it is impossible for our body and brain to relax. This rhythm is impossible to carry if we do not have the appropriate strategies or skills to do a good time management and of the demands that we receive or that we make ourselves.

I always make people think about Western movies from 30 years ago and action movies today. This is a clear example of the rhythm that we carry. Seeing one of the Western movies from 30 years ago is an excellent strategy to relax, but how many of us endure this slow, leisurely pace?

The cognitive-behavioral methodology is the type of psychological intervention with the greatest scientific support in its favor on its effectiveness in solving people's problems. What is known about its effects in people with anxiety problems?

The methodology cognitive-behavioral They have been shown to be extremely effective for anxiety because the main basis of working with people is simple. People are taught that the way they interpret the demands of the environment influences their emotional state.

In the same way, they are educated to process these demands or stimuli and to make decisions based on appropriate values ​​and beliefs scales so that they can recover and maintain their well-being. At the same time we educate you to make correct decision-making in stressful situations. The fact that insurance companies only take care of professional assistance invoices with this methodology is noteworthy.

What are the main stages of this form of psychological work?

The main work is to teach people to become aware of their emotions and to relate them not so much to what happens to them in life, but to how they think, how they value those situations. "It is not outside, but inside us, where the weather is good or bad."

The psychologist teach people to know their emotions, to understand them, to manage them in a efficient, not being afraid to express feelings and, in general, to think and act in a assertive.

Many people have scales of values ​​or beliefs that from my point of view do not allow them to live calmly. On many occasions the environment creates conditions that provoke emotional reactions that harm well-being, as can be the case in the workplace; let's not forget that 30% of sick leave in Spain are caused by stress. However, the environment has always threatened humans. Faced with the demands or demands of the environment, it is only possible to acquire certain skills: new ways of thinking to make more effective decisions and neutralize the anxiety associated with stress.

What made you interested in this type of methodology, and what advantages does it have compared to others?

Mainly there have been three sources of influence, the first being the University: I studied at the Autonomous University of Madrid and they were betting on this model for more than 20 years. The second major source has been my work in recent years. I have been dedicated many years to the prevention of traffic accidents, I am still doing it, and it is in this area where I was able to apply this methodology.

I met drivers who drank alcohol and then took the car, others did not wear their seat belts and many of them did not care about the penalties, the fines. I have had to apply the cognitive behavioral methodology, creating awareness campaigns to change habits so that drivers are convinced that wearing a seat belt can save them lifetime.

We have gone from 5,600 deaths in the last 20 years on the roads to less than half this last year, and one of the main strategies has been psychoeducation, I have no doubt. And finally, a non-university Professional Master's Degree in advanced behavioral methodology. carried out with the ALBOR-COHS Group, a benchmark in Spain, with more than 35 years of experience in this matter.

When it comes to stress and anxiety, approximately how long does it take for the first results of cognitive-behavioral therapy to appear? And when does the moment of maximum effectiveness arrive?

It all depends on the interest of the person to change and the professional you work with, there are people who learn very quickly and others, on the contrary, whose learning is slow. In any case the result is what matters, not so much the time.

I always say the same, you don't get there earlier by running, life is a long-distance race and often with obstacles.

In this sense, I consider that we have to go through 5 phases: learning knowledge, understanding it, internalization of the key messages, practice and automation, it is in this last phase where we obtain the maximum effectiveness.

To this specific question, a more specific answer would be to indicate that four months of professional assistance is usually the average time to achieve the desired results.

Beyond the progress that can be made in the anxiety sessions, what can people do on a day-to-day basis to improve their situation? And their relatives?

I usually recommend three great and powerful habits that are highly effective: learn to breatheLearn to go to bed to sleep, not to watch television and practice some non-strenuous sport, the latter is important.