Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Cognitive therapy for voice hearers

Most people with schizophrenia hear voices which can be insulting to them or give commands to harm themselves or other people and can contribute greatly to the distress experienced by people with mental illness. There is an emerging body of evidence that documents the efficacy of cognitive interventions for modifying appraisals linked with voice hearing. A U.S. study of 65 people with schizophrenia divided them up into two groups. One group received treatment as usual while the other group received 12, 90-minute sessions of cognitive interventions delivered by a mental-health nurse. Those who had received the cognitive intervention reported less severe hallucinations even a year after treatment and were over thirteen times as likely to maintain a reduction in their hallucinations.

England, Margaret - Significance of cognitive intervention for voice hearers Perspectives in Psychiatric Care January 2008, 44(1), 40-47

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