in St. Louis, Missouri
CBT for Anxiety
Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy that’s empathetic, nurturing, impactful, and tailored specifically to you.
You’ve heard that CBT can help with anxiety, but you're wondering—is it actually right for you or your child?
Are you stuck doing endless worksheets all session long? Will your therapist follow a one-size-fits-all approach, doing the exact same thing with your child as they do with everyone else?
And what about your thoughts—are you going to be told they’re wrong? That you just need to "think positive" and move on? You know something needs to change, but you don’t want to feel judged, dismissed, or told that what you’re experiencing isn’t real.
You’ve tried therapy before, but it didn’t seem to help—or maybe your child’s therapist just didn’t get them. You’re not sure if this is going to be any different. And everywhere online, people are saying CBT is too basic, too rigid, maybe even harmful. So what’s the truth? Can CBT actually help, or is it just another thing that won’t work for you?
At Compassionate Counseling St. Louis, we believe that CBT should be outcomes-focused, effective, and tailored to you and your child.
We never take a one-size-fits-all approach.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is one of the most well-researched, effective approaches for helping kids and teens manage anxiety, anger, and overwhelming emotions. But sometimes, CBT gets a bad rap. Parents and even some clients worry that it could be overly focused on challenging or changing thoughts—making it seem like certain thoughts are “bad” and need to be replaced with more positive ones.
That is not how we use CBT at Compassionate Counseling St. Louis.
Instead, we prioritize our relationship first. We focus on kindness, empathy, and unconditional positive regard. We use CBT as a component of our work, but not the endgame.
At Compassionate Counseling St. Louis, CBT is used as a tool to help kids and teens explore the connection between their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors—without judgment. We know that’s not the case for every untrained therapist who thinks they already know CBT.
We would never to tell you or your child that a thought or feeling is wrong or bad. In fact, we believe there’s no such thing as a bad thought or a bad feeling. Thoughts are just thoughts. Feelings are just feelings. They’re all valuable pieces of information that help us understand what’s going on internally - and knowing that empowers us to change them when they need to be changed.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy That’s Rooted in Compassion and Unconditional Positive Regard
Our approach to CBT is built on the foundation of Unconditional Positive Regard, a concept pioneered by Carl Rogers. This means that no matter what you, your child or your teen has thought, felt, or done, you are still worthy of care, support, and respect.
We meet kids, teens, young adults, and parents exactly where they are, offering a safe space to explore scary thoughts or big emotions, without fear of judgment.
Rather than labeling thoughts as “bad” or “irrational,” we help you get curious about them:
✔ What am I telling myself right now?
✔ What else could be going on?
✔ How does this thought make me feel?
✔ When I believe this thought, what do I do?
✔ Is this thought helping me, or is it getting in my way?
By recognizing how our thoughts directly impact our feelings & behaviors, and by viewing thoughts and feelings as neutral instead of good or bad, we empower our families to develop greater self-awareness and make choices that align with goals.
Ready to find a therapy approach that actually fits your child’s needs? Schedule your call today.
We fully recognize that CBT may not be the best fit for every person who comes to us.
That’s why we pair the foundation of CBT — what we think impacts what we feel, which impacts how we react — to other evidence-based therapy approaches.
We track outcomes each and every week, and incorporate play therapy interventions, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, and mindfulness and relaxation skills to really shape our approach to what you need—and we’re always checking in on if we’re effective or if we’re not.
How we use CBT in St. Louis:
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Recognize thought patterns – Helping you notice when certain thoughts lead to you feeling anxious, frustrated, or stuck.
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Understand emotional responses – Learning that feelings aren’t wrong or bad, but signals that something matters to you.
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Build coping skills – Finding specific tools to manage overwhelming emotions in a way that feels right for you.
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Increase confidence – Gaining the ability to choose how you respond to stressful or upsetting situations, empowering you to make real change.
Here’s what we DON’T do with CBT
Therapists without our level of training, education, or ongoing supervision may be using CBT ineffectively and unintentionally causing harm.
Some therapists — especially the burned out ones — try to use it as a one-size-fits-all approach, cycling through the same worksheets with every client, and even labeling thoughts as “bad” When things aren’t improving, they don’t worry about what they’re doing wrong - they blame you. So we know that being concerned about this specific therapy approach is VALID. And we want to not only be upfront about what CBT with us looks like, we want you to know what it doesn’t look like.
We’re NOT using worksheets every session. Some kids love worksheets for their brains, and others don’t. That’s fine! We can talk through CBT concepts, explore real-life examples, and teach strategies in a way that actually fits your child’s learning style. We can learn about the cognitive triangle with role play or pretending to be a wizard brain or a lizard brain. We can play catch to explore how we can flip thoughts, or use play-doh to sculpt out how different feelings look to us. We want to make those useful CBT concepts engaging, specific, and fun.
We’re NOT just treating the symptoms and saying, “You need CBT.” Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy is a tool, not a cure-all. If a therapist isn’t taking the time to assess underlying anxiety, stress, trauma, or other concerns, they’re only scratching the surface. We tailor our approach based on what will actually help—whether that’s CBT, ACT, RO-DBT, play therapy interventions, or a mix of approaches.
We’re NOT just assuming things are getting better. We actively check in with you every week to hear what’s going on. We track progress through weekly outcome scores and Session Rating Scales, where you tell us how we did. Did you feel heard? Understood? Respected? Was today’s session actually helpful? If not, what should we do differently? Your feedback helps us fine-tune therapy to make sure it’s working for you or your child.
We’re NOT telling you that we’re the ones who know it all. We are not the expert on your child, or your experiences. You are. We can offer a different perspective, share skills that we know have proven results, and offer intervention ideas, and because we’re working collaboratively and getting weekly feedback, we can immediately address what’s working and what’s not working, together.
We’re NOT labeling thoughts as bad. Thoughts are just thoughts. Feelings are just feelings. There’s no such thing as a “bad” feeling or a “bad” thought—or a bad brain, or a bad child. Instead of telling kids their brains are broken, we help them explore their thoughts and emotions with curiosity and self-compassion. Therapy isn’t about judgment—it’s about giving them the tools to feel more in control, not more ashamed.
At Compassionate Counseling St. Louis, we believe in therapy that truly helps - not therapy that just checks boxes.
Helping Kids and Teens Feel Heard, Not Criticized
Having anxiety or anxiety-driven anger, getting in trouble all the time, feeling out of control - it’s tough.
Parenting an anxious or angry child is tough, too. And we know that parents can sometimes feel like they’re being blamed for their child’s struggles.
Judgement is never on the table here.
Our team works collaboratively with parents, making sure they feel supported and included in the process.
At Compassionate Counseling St. Louis, therapy is never about pointing out what’s wrong—it’s about helping kids and families understand themselves better, build on their strengths, and develop the tools they need to thrive.
What to Expect After CBT at
Compassionate Counseling St. Louis
After working with our team, you’ll start to notice shifts—not just in your child’s behavior, but in how they handle stress, anxiety, and big emotions. They’ll still be the same unique, wonderful kid or teen you love, but they’ll have more tools to navigate challenges without feeling so overwhelmed.
You might see them pausing before reacting, using words to express frustration instead of shutting down or lashing out. They’ll start recognizing anxious thoughts for what they are—just thoughts—not facts that have to control them. You’ll notice more confidence, more calm, and maybe even a little more willingness to try things they used to avoid.
As a parent, you’ll feel more at ease too. Instead of walking on eggshells or feeling powerless to help, you’ll have strategies to support them in a way that actually works. It’s not about changing who they are—it’s about helping them feel more in control, more capable, and more understood.
Let’s take the first step together.
Schedule a free 15-minute phone consultation to talk about CBT and anxiety therapy in St. Louis—or virtually, if that works best for your schedule. If reaching out feels overwhelming, a parent can set up the call for you. No pressure, no judgment—just a chance to see if we’re the right fit.