Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) is a comprehensive, active-directive, philosophically and empirically based psychotherapy which focuses on helping people resolve cognitive, emotional, and behavioral problems. REBT was created and developed by the American psychotherapist and psychologist Albert Ellis. REBT is one of the first forms of Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and was first expounded and developed as a model of psychotherapy by Ellis in mid-1950s.

Psychological Distress Tolerance:
Change Your Mind and Change Your Life!
Maladaptive Belief Systems: Life Philosophies and Inner Harmony Fundamental to REBT is the observation that much human psychological disturbance, emotional suffering and "upsetness" results from our judgments, evaluations, maladaptive beliefs and philosophies about the life-events that we encounder as we adjust to living-in-the-world. In other words:

Human beings on the basis of their belief systems disturb themselves -- and even disturb themselves -- about their disturbances.

The Rational Emotive Therapy theoretical framework assumes that humans have both rational and irrational tendencies. Irrational beliefs prevent goal attainment, lead to inner conflict, more conflict with others and poor mental health. Rational beliefs lead to goal attainment, better mental functioning and more inner harmony. REBT claims that irrational and self-defeating thinking, emoting and behaving are correlated with emotional difficulties such as self-blame, clinical anger, hurt, unhealthy jealousy, unhealthy envy, guilt, shame, depression and anxiety.

Maladaptive Belief Systems: Learning to Change Your Mind
This is a view that is shared with some other well-known therapies, such as Re-evaluation Counseling and Client Centered Therapy - as these both arose in the mid-50s, Albert Ellis has had a tremendous influence on them. REBT provides an educational model and an active-directive process in which the therapist teaches the client how to identify irrational and self-defeating cognitions (belief systems) which by their "irrational" (untenable) nature are unrealistic, illogical and "absolutistic," and then teaches clients to forcefully and actively dispute them, and replace or modify such philosophies with more rational and self-helping ones.

Cognitive and Behavioral Adaptation
By using different rational-emotive methods and activities, the client, together with direct help from the therapist (and dedicated rehearsal of homework exercises) can gain a more rational, logical and constructive rational (reasonable) way of thinking, emoting and behaving. One of the main objectives in REBT is to show the client that whenever unpleasant activating events occur in people's lives, they have a choice of making themselves "feel healthily and self-helpingly sorry, disappointed, frustrated, and annoyed, rather than making themselves feel unhealthily and self-defeatingly horrified, terrified, panicked, depressed, self-hating, and self-pitying" (Ellis, 2003).

Self-Disturbing Core Philosophies:
Rational Emotive Behavior therapist and founder or REBT Albert Ellis says: "When people keep challenging and questioning their self-disturbing core philosophies, after a while they tend to automatically, and even in advance, bring new, rational, self-helping attitudes to their life problems and thereby make themselves significantly less upsettable." (Ellis, 2003).

The Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy Network:

Disputing of Irrational Beliefs:

Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy teaches people to seek out and dispute their Irrational Beliefs. You can increase your rationality and reduce your irrational beliefs, by spending several minutes each day asking yourself the following questions and entering your answers in the text areas below. To get the best results, give careful thought to each question, and avoid relying on well-rehearsed answers.

The REBT Disputing of Irrational Beliefs "DIBS" Form can be used in conjunction with the below Self-Help Form. Give this model a try at the below link:

Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy Self-Help Form:

Once you have answered each of the questions, you can process the form to review your responses: Please print your answers and bring them to you next session with Dr. Hart.

Dr. Patrick Hart
206-547-HELP in Seattle and Bellevue

Schedule a Time to Explore Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy