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In person in Natick and telehealth across Massachusetts
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Aurora Counseling Associates
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What we treat

CBT Therapy in Natick, MA

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) at Aurora Counseling Associates is structured, evidence-based therapy that works by changing the relationship between what you think, what you do, and how you feel. It is the most-researched form of psychotherapy and one of the foundational approaches our clinicians use. We provide CBT for children, teens, and adults in our Natick, MA office and via telehealth across Massachusetts, Vermont, Michigan, Florida, and Connecticut.

Book a free 15-minute consultMeet our clinicians

What CBT is

CBT rests on a simple idea: thoughts, feelings, and behaviors influence each other. When any one of those gets stuck in an unhelpful pattern, it pulls the others with it. CBT works by identifying the patterns, testing them against what happens, and building new responses you can use in real life.

  • Identifying automatic thoughts

    Identifying the thoughts that show up automatically in the situations you find hardest.

  • Examining those thoughts rather than accepting them as fact

    Are they accurate? What evidence supports or contradicts them? Are there other ways to see this?

  • Behavioral experiments

    Trying things between sessions and seeing what happens versus what you predicted would happen.

  • Skill-building

    Practical tools you can use when you notice the patterns starting: pacing breathing, behavioral activation when depression is pulling you down, exposure work when anxiety is shrinking your life.

  • Homework

    CBT is one of the more active forms of therapy. You will work on things between sessions, not only in the room.

What CBT is good for

CBT has the strongest research base of any psychotherapy approach for:

  • Anxiety disordersgeneralized anxiety, social anxiety, panic disorder, specific phobias, health anxiety, performance anxiety.
  • Depressionespecially with the addition of behavioral activation.
  • Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)specifically through Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), which is a specialized form of CBT.
  • InsomniaCBT-I is the first-line treatment for chronic insomnia and often more effective than medication long-term.
  • trauma-focused CBT and prolonged exposure are among the most-studied approaches for PTSD.
  • Body-focused repetitive behaviorshair-pulling, skin-picking.
  • School refusal and academic anxiety.
  • Anger that has become a pattern.

CBT for children and teens

CBT works for kids and teens too, with adaptations for developmental stage. For younger children, we use games, drawings, stories, and concrete exercises to make CBT concepts accessible. For teens, the work tends to be more conversational but follows the same principles, often with parent guidance running in parallel.

CBT is particularly well-suited to kids with anxiety, school refusal, OCD-spectrum concerns, and depression.

A man expresses emotions during a therapy session with a therapist in a modern office setting.

How CBT looks at Aurora

Most of our CBT work is short to medium-term. A typical course of CBT for a specific concern is 12 to 20 weekly sessions. Some clients do longer-term CBT, especially when multiple concerns are present or when the patterns are deeply established.

Sessions are 45 to 55 minutes. The first session is about understanding what you are working on and starting to map the patterns. The first few sessions usually include some psychoeducation about how CBT works and what we will be doing together. From there the work shifts to active intervention.

We blend CBT with other approaches when that fits. Pure CBT works well for some clients; others benefit from CBT for the skills work alongside more relational or trauma-informed work for the deeper layer.

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A typical course of CBT for a specific concern is 12 to 20 weekly sessions.

Therapists at Aurora who use CBT

CBT is part of most of our clinicians' practices. Those whose work most centers on CBT include:

We will match you with the clinician whose CBT focus, population, and scheduling fit.

Insurance and rates

Self-pay is $200 to $250 per session. In-network with BCBS, Tufts (HMO/PPO/GIC), Tufts Health Direct, Harvard Pilgrim, Point32Health, Optum, UBH, Mass General Brigham Health Plan, and Health Plans Inc. Some clinicians also accept Aetna and UHC; we confirm coverage at intake. HSA, FSA, and out-of-network superbills available. Rates and insurance.

Who you would work with

Clinicians who offer CBT Therapy

Read how each person works before you reach out. If you are not sure who to ask for, we will help you choose.

Art therapist

Eren Santana-Bykofsky, MA

These clinicians list this as a specialty. Most of our team works with it in some form, so if you have someone in mind, ask and we will tell you whether the fit makes sense.

Questions

Common questions

How is CBT different from regular talk therapy?
CBT is more structured. Sessions often have a working agenda. You will have homework. The focus is on changing specific patterns in your current life rather than on extended exploration of the past. Many clients find this directness useful; others prefer more exploratory work, in which case we might recommend a different approach.
How long does CBT take?
For a specific concern, typically 12 to 20 weekly sessions. Some concerns work in shorter courses; some benefit from longer work.
Will CBT work if I have tried therapy before that did not help?
Possibly. Many clients who did not connect with previous therapy find CBT useful because of its structure and focus. It also depends on what kind of therapy you tried, what you were working on, and the fit with the clinician. We will discuss this at intake.
Is CBT just positive thinking?
No. CBT is not about replacing negative thoughts with positive ones. It is about examining the thoughts that are showing up and developing more accurate, useful ways of seeing what is in front of you. Sometimes the more accurate view is just as critical of a situation as the original thought; the change is in how you respond.
Does CBT work for trauma?
Yes, in specific forms. Trauma-focused CBT and prolonged exposure are evidence-based treatments for PTSD. They are not the right approach for every kind of trauma; we will discuss whether CBT or a different approach fits your situation. See trauma therapy.
Can children do CBT?
Yes, with developmental adaptations. We use games, stories, and concrete exercises to make CBT accessible to kids. Parent involvement is part of the work.
Do you do ERP for OCD?
Some of our clinicians work with OCD-spectrum concerns using ERP-informed approaches. We will discuss at intake whether our scope is the right fit for your OCD presentation or whether a referral to an OCD specialty practice is the better match.

Where to next

Related areas we work in

Get started

Ready when you are

If CBT sounds like the kind of work you are looking for, request an appointment or call (508) 650-0991. We will match you with the right clinician.

Book a free 15-minute consultCall 508-650-0991