I have over 35 years experience as a LMHC. CBT is a useful short term talk therapy used to improve coping with anxiety, depression, OCD, PTSD, eating disorders and substance abuse issues. Too many people let their emotions guide their behavior. Pretend you have a locomotive, middle car, and a caboose. According to CBT, your thoughts are the locomotive...your feelings are the middle car...and your behavior is the caboose. The idea is to use the "3 C's of CBT" to "CATCH" the counter-productive thought, "CHECK" the thought (is it really true?), and "CHANGE" the faulty thought to a more balanced thought. This will effect your feelings and ultimately modify your behavior. People with Major Depression, for example, allow their feelings to be the locomotive ("I feel it so it must be true")...which can lead to thoughts of death or suicide...and paralysis of behavior (i.e. low energy/loss of interest in things that you once enjoyed).