Helping our patients change their outcome through changing their “source code”

In counseling, it’s important to understand people’s thoughts and behaviours through “reverse engineering” these back to their fundamental values and beliefs.

Our values and beliefs are like the “source code or DNA”, and thoughts, actions, behaviours and outcomes, are like the expression of that “source code or DNA”. The trouble is, our values and beliefs are often subconscious, and not clearly transparent for us to see.

For lasting changes, change it at the “source code or DNA” level. That’s not easy of course.

For more practical changes, change it at the thought and action level. This may be more “superficial in nature” at first, but in time, it can change the “source code”.

Both strategies are important and hence, “cognitive” and “behavioural” therapy CBT.

Imagine if we can change some of the “source code or DNA” of the people we see to ….

I am enough.
I am lovable or significant.
I am significant because I fail, learn from my mistakes, and grow from the process.
“I can” rather than “I can’t”.

Wouldn’t that alleviate a lot of the mental health burden we see in ourselves and our patients?