CBT Isn’t CrossFit for Your Feelings: How Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Actually Works

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The Mental Health Made Simple Podcast

Dr. Mark Mayfield | Jonathan Collier

11 episodes

5 days ago

Think of caring for your mind like training your body—you need clear guidance and simple steps. On The Mental Health Made Simple Podcast, we cut through the noise—no jargon, no hype—and bring you research-backed insights and real stories from clinicians, coaches, and everyday people. Tune in for practical tips and honest conversations that help you invest in yourself, support others, and make mental wellness clear, accessible, and doable

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CBT Isn’t CrossFit for Your Feelings: How Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Actually Works

The Mental Health Made Simple Podcast

28 minutes 44 seconds

2 weeks ago

CBT Isn’t CrossFit for Your Feelings: How Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Actually Works

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is one of the most widely recommended forms of therapy, yet most people either misunderstand it or think it’s a mental bootcamp designed to break them down.

Spoiler: it doesn’t involve deadlifts, sweat angels, or reliving your childhood trauma while doing burpees.

As the world continues to focus on mental health awareness throughout October, following World Mental Health Day, this conversation is timely for anyone seeking better tools to manage anxiety, negative thoughts, perfectionism, or emotional overwhelm.

We unpack the real science behind CBT and show how small shifts in your thoughts can completely transform your emotions, behaviors, and long-term mental resilience.

What's in the episode:

Why CBT isn't about toughness or emotional bootcamp
How thoughts trigger feelings and behaviors—and how to interrupt negative cycles
The most common cognitive distortions (like catastrophizing or all-or-nothing thinking)
Practical tools like thought records, cognitive restructuring, and behavioral activation
How to use CBT methods in everyday life to reduce anxiety and self-sabotage

How to choose the right therapist and questions to ask during your first session

Chapters

0:00 – Setting the stage: Why CBT matters right now

2:15 – What CBT is not (the CrossFit analogy)

5:30 – The core concept of cognitive behavioral therapy

10:45 – How thoughts create emotional responses

15:20 – Identifying cognitive distortions

21:00 – Tools that rewire your thought patterns

26:30 – What makes a great therapist fit (and how to ask)

31:45 – Practical CBT exercises you can start using today

35:10 – Final encouragement: moving from stuck to aligned

Resources & Next Steps

Visit MentalHealthMadeSimple.life to access tools, upcoming workshops, and resources designed to make mental health concepts easy to understand and apply in everyday life.

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New episodes drop weekly to simplify mental health, one conversation at a time.