uce a client’s suffering and help improve their functioning between episodes as well as decrease the frequency of future episodes. Also, a number of treatment plans were presented and discussed not only at length but also at different stages of the disease process. Specific psychotherapies were presented for depressive episodes as well as manic episodes. They were also presented separately so the professional involved in the treatment decisions can consider different treatment strategies at different times based on the individual needs of their clients. (This analysis, however, will only focus on the discussion of the research study that focused on the efficacy of cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) for bipolar disorder.)An analysis of the evidence of the efficacy of CBT: The CBT methods that therapists can use and the efficacy for specific CBT interventions for this disorder was based on Basco and Rush’s (1996) book Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Bipolar Disease (above). A separate intervention concerning Cognitive Therapy alone for depressive episodes was also addressed. Cognitive Therapy interventions introduced during a depressive episode that addresses irrational beliefs and distorted attitudes reduces depressive symptoms. The efficacy of this intervention was based on evidence published in a 1978 article Depression: Must Pharmacotherapy Fail for Cognitive Therapy to Succeed? published in Cognitive Therapy and Research. The above two interventions empower clients to cope with psychosocial stresses by educating them regarding their disease, its treatment and by teaching them skills that help them monitor the severity of their symptoms, belief systems and attitudes. When successful, they help clients transform their lives.How this chapter makes a unique contribution was by providing different interventions for the mania and depression phases of the illnesses. It also provided interventions for the manic phase of th...
