You might have heard of “brief CBT”—the promise of mental relief in just 6-10 sessions. Sounds great, right? Like a therapy smoothie. But brief CBT is for specific, narrow problems: a phobia of elevators, or a recent breakup that’s making you cry into your morning cereal.
For the big stuff—like chronic depression, deep anxiety, or the feeling that you’re a garbage person wrapped in a human suit—brief CBT is like using a Band-Aid on a shark bite. It stops the bleeding for a minute, but you’ll need stitches. And possibly a new shark.
Funny but true: A 2019 meta-analysis found that the average CBT duration for anxiety disorders is 14 sessions. For depression? Closer to 18. But here’s the kicker: a third of people drop out before session 10. Why? Because change is hard, and Netflix is easier.
