106- CBT 2016-4

I came back from my fourth session with my new CBT therapist, very happy as she congratulated me, and I quote ''you did a very good job with your assignments'' for these past couple weeks.
Indeed, as I detailed my Paris trip in post 104, I had to ask for information, directions and so forth in stores, the street and public transports, at least once a day.

I explained that this part was easier than I had anticipated ; that the previous assignment of asking the hour had been difficult but prepared me to this second one, which became more and more natural for me to do.

I also mentioned the travel anxiety in Paris was so big, that the one from my task was more than tolerable for me to bear and told her all the details. 

I showed her the small notebook I had taken with me to Paris, the notes I took and their french translation in the big CBT notebook - for which my therapist congratulated me as well. 

She found very positive that I had only one afternoon with panic attacks (on 2nd of July, after we got lost and had to take the metro in spite of my wishes not to - read the details in 104). 
I really imagined having daily breakdowns and panic, so it was indeed very positive in the end and I do plan to go back in 3 weeks with my wife, meet her uncles and cousin, and do some additional tourism during that stay. 

I told her that I'll plan B the metros ahead of time, in case we need to take them, and also do take the ride with a more open mind and relinquish my need to control how situations occur - going on metro voluntarily will help reduce my anxiety. 

My current task for the next 2 weeks until fifth session on 25/07 is to invite friends I know less than my closer ones, and to continue the previous of asking information etc.

Now, that is a good timing : my wife is going away for 6 days, and I had planned to invite a few friends. One of them has asked me if his girlfriend could come and at first I had told him that I preferred not this time, so I wouldn't give the negative image of being anxious. 
Then, I discussed it with my wife who told me outright that I had answered badly, and that I shouldn't let my anxious self to dictate these choices.

I subsequently told my friend to come with his girlfriend, and apologized for letting my anxious alterego to respond. 

This task is well suited, and I'll need to find more occasions than I had originally planed, in order to alleviate stress and anxieties surrounding meeting people I don't know, or that I don't know enough. 

All in all, I'm very pleased with the way that my therapist is helping me with progressive exposures to social situations. 

To be continued!