Cognitive Analytic Therapy (CAT) Therapy

CAT is an integrative therapy that brings together ideas from:

• Cognitive therapy

• Psychodynamic therapy

• Attachment theory

It is based on the understanding that:

• We develop ways of relating to ourselves and others based on early experiences

• These patterns may once have been protective or necessary

• Over time, they can become unhelpful or distressing

CAT helps make these patterns visible and understandable, so change becomes possible.

CAT is a collaborative and time-limited therapy, typically offered over an agreed number of sessions.

Together, we work to:

• Develop a shared understanding of your difficulties

• Identify repeating patterns in relationships, emotions, and behaviours

• Understand how past experiences may be influencing present difficulties

• Find new, healthier ways of relating to yourself and others

CAT often uses written and visual tools to support understanding, such as:

• A reformulation letter summarising your story and patterns

• Diagrams that map out repeating cycles

These tools are developed together and revisited throughout therapy.

CAT can be helpful for a wide range of emotional and psychological difficulties, particularly where patterns feel long-standing or relational.

This includes:

• Relationship difficulties

• Repeated interpersonal conflicts

• Low self-esteem and self-criticism

• Depression and chronic low mood

• Anxiety linked to relational experiences

• Trauma and attachment-related difficulties

• Emotional regulation difficulties

• Feeling “stuck” despite previous therapy

CAT is often helpful when difficulties do not fit neatly into one diagnosis.

CAT places particular emphasis on relationships — both with others and with yourself.

It helps by:

• Identifying repeating relational patterns

• Understanding how these patterns developed

• Recognising how they show up in current relationships

• Supporting new, healthier ways of relating

This can lead to improved communication, boundaries, and emotional connection.

In CAT, depression and anxiety are understood within the context of life experiences and relationships.

CAT helps by:

• Identifying critical or punitive self-relating patterns

• Understanding cycles of withdrawal, self-blame, or fear

• Developing more compassionate and supportive internal responses

• Reducing repeated emotional traps that maintain distress

Change focuses on awareness, choice, and developing new ways of responding.

CAT is particularly helpful for people whose trauma is:

• Relational

• Developmental

• Repeated over time

CAT helps by:

• Making sense of trauma responses without blame

• Understanding how early experiences shaped coping strategies

• Reducing shame and self-criticism

• Supporting emotional regulation and relational safety

Therapy is paced carefully and grounded in trust and collaboration.

• CAT is sometimes misunderstood. It is not:

  • Long-term open-ended therapy

  • Blaming parents or past relationships

  • Purely cognitive or behavioural

  • Detached or overly clinical

  At Atticus Psychotherapies, CAT is delivered in a warm, relational, and reflective way.

• An initial assessment and shared formulation

• A collaboratively written reformulation letter

• Clear focus on agreed patterns and goals

• Regular reflection on progress and endings

• A respectful, non-judgemental therapeutic relationship

• CAT may be helpful if you:

  • Notice repeating patterns in relationships or emotions

  • Feel stuck despite previous therapy

  • Want to understand why difficulties keep happening

  • Are interested in a relational, reflective approach

  If you are unsure, this can be explored together in an initial consultation.