One of the biggest benefits of using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) techniques for depression and anxiety disorders is that most of the process happens in your mind, without forcing you to experience and face your emotions directly.

CBT approaches depression from a mental level of thinking and decision-making. It is believed that our thoughts influence our emotions, and our emotions influence our behavior. Therefore, by changing our thoughts, we change our mood and our behaviour indirectly.

Cognitive behavioral approaches work best for feelings of depression that are there regardless of what's happening externally, rather than situational depression that occurs after an event that it is natural to feel depressed about. If we're experiencing events in life that used to bring about feelings of happiness, that have now suddenly turned into depressing feelings, then it can usually be said that those feelings result from our own mental thinking process rather than the situation itself.

This is where CBT comes in. This therapeutic technique sets out to bridge the gap between our experience of reality and the mental idea we have about our reality. By doing so, often our feelings and behaviours become more authentically based on who we really are, rather than being dominated by what we are thinking about and making judgements about.

CBT therapists can be found in most countries, however because CBT is a learning-based set of techniques there are many books and resources available for you to begin implementing the techniques yourself from home. In my own experience CBT has been highly effective in improving the clarity of my thinking, and the productivity of my behaviour, even though I did not use the techniques for depression. I believe CBT benefits anyone, with or without mental illness, and ultimately it brings us back down to earth on many levels.

One E-Book that introduces CBT exceptionally well is "Overcome Depression" by Dr Richard Green. You may like to read more about this topic at his website.