Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a structured, short-term therapy that helps people recognize and change unhelpful thoughts and behaviors. It’s widely considered the gold standard in anxiety treatment, and it’s at the heart of the care we provide at The Anxiety Treatment Center of Greenwich.
CBT is practical and focused on real life. Rather than only talking about anxiety, you learn concrete skills for handling it and practice them where they matter most: at home, at school, at work and with other people. We use CBT with children, teens and adults, and every plan is shaped around the person’s age, symptoms and goals. You can read more about the signs and types of anxiety on our Understanding Anxiety page.
Anxiety often keeps itself going through a cycle. Anxious thoughts lead to uncomfortable feelings, and avoiding what feels frightening brings quick relief but can keep the fear in place. CBT helps break that cycle. Working together, you and your clinician identify the patterns that keep anxiety going and build new, more helpful ways of responding.
Learning to recognize automatic thoughts that are inaccurate or unhelpful, question them and see how they shape feelings and behavior.
Developing practical coping skills you can use in everyday situations, from school and work to friendships and family life.
Exposure therapy, a core part of CBT, helps you gradually face feared situations in a safe, supportive setting, reducing avoidance and building confidence.
New skills grow stronger with use, so you’ll usually practice what you learn between sessions. For children, parents often help at home.
For children and teens, parents are part of the process, not just observers. We often coach parents as “anxiety coaches,” helping them reinforce new skills and support their child’s progress outside of sessions.
For adults, CBT offers a clear, collaborative way to work through anxiety that affects work, relationships and daily life. Whatever your age, treatment is designed around you, with an emphasis on practical, lasting results.
As a specialized practice for anxiety therapy in Greenwich, CT, we use CBT and other proven methods to treat anxiety and related disorders, including generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, social anxiety, separation anxiety, specific phobias and OCD.
Our founders bring specialized CBT training to this work. Maryellen Pachler Kennell, APRN, specializes in the cognitive-behavioral treatment of anxiety disorders and OCD in youth, and served as lead clinician in a study evaluating CBT for childhood anxiety in primary care settings. Jill Vaughan Tesei, APRN, completed training in CBT through the Yale Child Study Center and further developed her CBT expertise at the Beck Institute at the University of Pennsylvania. Meet our founders.
When appropriate, CBT can be combined with other options we offer, such as virtual reality therapy, parent guidance and careful, collaborative medication support. Learn more about all of our treatment methods.
CBT is a structured, short-term form of talk therapy. It helps people become aware of inaccurate or unhelpful ways of thinking, question those thoughts and change the behaviors that keep anxiety going. It is widely considered the gold standard in anxiety treatment.
Yes. Exposure therapy is a core part of CBT for anxiety. It involves gradually facing feared situations in a safe, supportive environment, so that over time the fear decreases and confidence grows.
Usually, yes. CBT works best when new skills are used in everyday life, so your clinician may suggest things to practice between sessions. For children and teens, parents often help with this at home.
Yes. We provide care for children, adolescents and adults. For younger clients, we often work closely with parents, coaching them to reinforce skills and support progress at home.
For some people, yes. When appropriate, medication can be part of a comprehensive care plan, and we offer careful, collaborative medication management for both youth and adults.
We don’t bill insurance directly, but we encourage you to explore your out-of-network benefits. Our services are generally reimbursed by health savings accounts.
If anxiety is getting in the way of everyday life, CBT can help you or your child build skills for lasting change. Call our office at (203) 769-1365 or contact us to ask questions or schedule an initial call.
We provide expert diagnosis and evidence-based treatment for anxiety disorders in children, adolescents, and adults—helping individuals and families move forward with clarity and confidence.
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