book today



We do not respond only to what happens. We also respond to what we believe it means.

A delayed message can become evidence that someone is pulling away. A mistake can become proof that we are inadequate. A moment of uncertainty can become a sign that something is about to go wrong. 

These interpretations can happen so automatically that they feel less like thoughts and more like facts.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, helps us slow this process down. Together, we examine how thoughts, assumptions, interpretations, emotions, physical responses, and behaviors influence one another. The goal is not to force positive thinking or convince you that your concerns are irrational. It is to develop a more flexible and accurate relationship with the meaning you make of your experiences.

CBT is based on the understanding that thoughts, emotions, bodily responses, and behaviors are interconnected. The meaning we assign to an experience can influence how we feel and what we do next. Our behavior then shapes the experiences we have, which may reinforce what we already believe.

For example, if you expect rejection, you may interpret ambiguity as evidence that someone is losing interest. You might seek repeated reassurance, become guarded, or withdraw before the other person has an opportunity to respond. The resulting distance may then appear to confirm the original expectation.

CBT helps make this cycle visible. Once we can recognize the connections within it, we gain more places to intervene. We can question an automatic interpretation, direct our attention toward information we previously overlooked, experiment with another behavior, and observe what happens next.

CBT is often described as learning to challenge negative thoughts. Although examining thoughts is part of the work, our approach is broader than replacing a “negative” thought with a “positive” one. Some painful thoughts are realistic. Some fears contain important information. Some situations genuinely require boundaries, protection, grief, or change. The purpose is not to think your way out of every uncomfortable emotion. It is to explore:

  • What happened?
  • What meaning did I assign to it?
  • What am I assuming or predicting?
  • What evidence supports that interpretation?
  • What information might I be overlooking?
  • Is there another explanation that is also possible?
  • How does this belief influence what I feel and do?
  • What might I discover if I responded differently?

This process develops discernment. It helps us distinguish between what is happening in the present and what our history has taught us to anticipate.
Over time, repeated experiences can form deeper beliefs about who we are, what we can expect from other people, and how the world works. These beliefs might sound like:

  • I am not enough.
  • My needs are a burden.
  • I cannot make mistakes.
  • People eventually leave.
  • I have to remain in control.
  • Rest must be earned.
  • If someone is upset, I am responsible for fixing it.

These stories often exist for a reason. They may reflect conclusions that once helped us understand our environment or remain connected to important people. At Ritualize, we do not approach these beliefs as errors that need to be argued away. We become curious about how they formed, how they influence the present, and whether they still represent the whole truth.


Thinking differently can open a possibility. Experience helps make that possibility believable. CBT often includes behavioral experiments, which are intentional opportunities to test an expectation in daily life. You might express a need and observe how the other person responds. You might allow a task to be good enough and discover what actually follows. You might rest without first completing everything on your list. You might remain in a conversation rather than assuming you already know how it will end.

The goal is not to guarantee a preferred outcome. It is to gather more complete information. These experiences can reveal where an expectation remains accurate, where a boundary or external change is needed, and where an old prediction may no longer fit the present. When new experiences are noticed and integrated, they can gradually reshape what feels possible.

Understanding how thoughts, meaning, and behavior shape experience


What is CBT?

More than challenging thoughts

The stories that organize experience

Creating new evidence

cognitive behavioral Therapy

becoming your future

Self

CBT is cognitive, but our experience is never cognitive alone. A thought can arrive with a racing heart, a tightening throat, a collapse in posture, or an urgent impulse to escape. Sometimes we can identify a more balanced interpretation while the body continues preparing for an older outcome.

For this reason, CBT at Ritualize may be integrated with nervous system awareness, mindfulness, breathwork, and experiential somatic practices. We may examine the thought while also noticing what happens in the body, what emotion is present, and what protective response has been activated. This helps cognitive understanding become connected to lived experience.

CBT may be useful for:

  • Anxiety and persistent worry
  • Social anxiety
  • Panic and fear-based avoidance
  • Perfectionism and procrastination
  • Self-criticism and shame
  • Depression and behavioral withdrawal
  • Intrusive or repetitive thinking
  • Difficulty tolerating uncertainty
  • People-pleasing and reassurance seeking
  • Stress and burnout
  • Avoidance of difficult emotions, conversations, or situations
  • Beliefs that continue limiting your choices
CBT is not about controlling every thought or eliminating emotional discomfort. It is about recognizing when a thought has become an unquestioned conclusion, understanding how that conclusion shapes your experience, and developing the flexibility to consider and practice something different. As that flexibility grows, you gain greater choice in where you direct your attention, what meanings you accept as true, and how you respond to the life unfolding in front of you.

Integrating the mind and body

What CBT may help you address

The purpose of the work

an integrated approach

examines how that interpretation is operating now, what it leads you to notice or overlook, and whether it remains accurate, helpful, or complete.


explores how the pattern influences connection, how it unfolds between people, and how it may emerge within the therapeutic relationship itself.

CBT

Relational

asks where a particular meaning, belief, or expectation came from and how earlier experiences continue to influence the present.

Psychodynamic

notices how the experience lives in the body and nervous system, including the sensations, emotions, impulses, and protective responses that may arise before conscious thought.


Somatic

Category title

At Ritualize, these modalities are not practiced in isolation. A single experience can be understood from several perspectives, and each perspective may reveal something important.

These perspectives work together.

For example, you might understand that your fear of disappointing others developed within an early relationship. We may then examine how that expectation influences your thoughts and choices today, notice what happens in your body when someone is unhappy with you, and explore how the pattern affects your ability to express needs or remain connected during conflict.

At times, we may move beyond conversation and into experiential work. Through body awareness, imagery, movement, breath, sound, gesture, or emotional expression, we can explore what is happening in the present and create space for emotions or protective responses that have previously been suppressed, inhibited, or left without expression.

Experiential practices can also give the body an opportunity to encounter something different. You might practice using your voice, pushing away, establishing a boundary, receiving support, remaining present with an emotion, or experiencing choice where you once felt powerless. The intention is not to manufacture catharsis or force an emotional release. It is to support the body in expressing what is already asking for attention and experiencing new possibilities with awareness, agency, and appropriate pacing.

Our work is responsive rather than formulaic. We draw from each modality according to what you are experiencing, what feels accessible, and what the process is asking for at that moment.

The purpose is not to fit you into a particular method. It is to bring together insight, meaning, embodied experience, and relationship so that change can be understood, experienced, practiced, and integrated across the whole person.

Book a complimentary introductory call

ready to explore?

to see if we’re the right fit.

A few common questions we get about our therapy services

What is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), and how do you use it in therapy?

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is an evidence-based approach that explores the relationship between our thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. It helps identify patterns of thinking that may be contributing to distress and supports the development of more balanced, flexible ways of responding to life's challenges.
At Ritualize, CBT is one of several approaches I integrate into therapy. While it can be incredibly helpful for increasing awareness and developing practical skills, I also recognize that lasting change often involves more than changing thoughts alone. Together, we'll consider not only what you're thinking, but also how your experiences, emotions, relationships, and nervous system may be shaping those patterns.

Is CBT just about replacing negative thoughts with positive ones?

No. One of the biggest misconceptions about CBT is that it's simply about "thinking positively." In reality, CBT encourages us to become curious about our thought patterns, examine whether they're accurate or helpful, and develop perspectives that are more balanced and grounded in reality. In my practice, these cognitive strategies are integrated with a broader therapeutic approach. Sometimes insight alone creates meaningful change. Other times, we also need to explore the emotional, relational, or nervous system experiences that have shaped those thoughts in the first place.

What are your fees, and what should I know before getting started?

Individual psychotherapy sessions are $275 for a 50-minute session. Ritualize is an out-of-network practice, which means I do not bill insurance directly. If your plan includes out-of-network benefits, I'm happy to provide a superbill that you can submit for possible reimbursement. Sessions are offered virtually throughout New York, and you must be located in New York to receive therapy services. If you are located outside of New York or are interested in coaching, we offer embodiment coaching as supplemental services. If you're unsure whether we're the right fit, I offer a complimentary 15-minute consultation. It's an opportunity to discuss what brings you to therapy, ask any questions you may have, and get a sense of whether my approach aligns with what you're looking for.