What cognitive-behavioral technique is commonly used to reduce stress in patients?

• A. Progressive muscle relaxation
• B. Deep breathing exercises
• C. Cognitive reframing or cognitive restructuring to challenge catastrophic thoughts.
• D. Reiki

Answer: (C)

Cognitive reframing or cognitive restructuring is a cognitive-behavioral approach that targets how a person interprets stressful situations. By identifying automatic, distressing thoughts and examining whether they’re accurate or exaggerated, patients learn to challenge catastrophic interpretations and replace them with more balanced, plausible appraisals. This shift in thinking reduces the emotional distress that fuels the stress response and can lessen physiological arousal over time. Practically, it involves recognizing the stressful thought, evaluating evidence for and against it, considering alternative explanations, and testing the revised thought in real life.

Relaxation techniques like progressive muscle relaxation and deep breathing directly ease physical tension and autonomic arousal, offering quick relief but not necessarily changing the underlying thinking patterns driving stress. Reiki, while used by some as a relaxation or energy-based practice, lacks the same evidence-based grounding in cognitive-behavioral theory.