Our brain is constantly perceiving, processing, organizing and memorizing information. It allows for these Psychological processes to actively take place, and together, these mental processes are referred to as cognitive processes/ thinking processes or cognition. By definition, cognition refers to thinking and it comprises of different complex psychological processes such as perception, attention, judgment, problem-solving, language and memory. These are automatic and occur at a very fast pace in our brains. Cognitions/thinking patterns are covert i.e. they are internal processes that cannot be seen. However, they are visible to us in terms of our behaviour. Behaviours are actions that are done in response to either internal or external events. Thoughts and behaviours that do not cause any dysfunction are desirable. Thoughts and behaviours become problematic if they cause stress and harm to self and/or others, and block the person from achieving his/her goals. Often these thoughts are called irrational as they are misinterpretations of the actual reality, and the individual strongly holds such strong beliefs even in case of contradictory evidence. They distort the individual’s perception and make their thinking negative about themselves, others and the world.

Some examples of irrational thoughts are as follows: “I must score perfectly in my exams. Otherwise, I’m a complete failure”; “I should agree with everyone otherwise they’ll hate me”; I have a pain in my chest, I’m going to have a heart attack or severe illness” etc. There are different types of irrational thoughts or as they are called, cognitive distortions or thinking errors. They may be different in content but what they all share in common is the fact that they are based on irrational beliefs and are problematic for the individual. Therefore, it is essential that these negative thoughts and actions are replaced by positive ones that lead a healthy life.
To help with the same comes in the picture a type of psychotherapy called Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), as the name suggests, aims to work on these dysfunctional thoughts and behaviour patterns. 

CBT works to relieve the psychological stress of the individual by correcting the faulty beliefs and replacing the maladaptive thoughts and actions with adaptive and positive ones.

CBT is an effective treatment which focuses on helping people with specific problems and emphasizes on the present thoughts and behaviours. CBT is highly useful in treating a range of conditions such as: Addiction, Anger Issues, Anxiety, Bipolar Disorder, Depression, Eating Disorder, Obsessive- Compulsive Disorder, Panic Attacks, PTSD, Personality Disorders, Phobias, Sexual Disorders, Sleep Disorder, Stress and Substance Use Disorders. CBT is also useful in dealing with various emotional challenges such as:

• Management of symptoms, psychological issues
• To prevent relapse of psychological issues.
• Coping with stressful life events in an effective manner
• Managing emotions
• helps in controlling anxiety