Walter J. Matweychuk, Ph.D.

Dr. Albert Ellis, the originator of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), changed the psychotherapy paradigm. In 1956 at the American Psychological Association in Chicago, he gave a presentation where he argued the most efficient and thorough way of helping people in psychotherapy was to offer them a choice in how they think about things. This … Read more

Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) aims to free people from unhealthy emotional reactions humans all too easily experience. As fallible humans, we tend to demand perfection in ourselves, others, and even of the conditions of life. REBT is a leading psychotherapeutic approach for overcoming perfectionism because it targets the rigid and extreme attitudes which are … Read more

Albert Ellis argued that one way of thinking about emotional disturbance was to see it as extreme thinking. He taught that fallible humans, all humans, are prone to taking themselves, others, and life too seriously or not seriously enough. He often attempted to use humor to help people give up the three general ideas they … Read more

Fallible humans anger themselves. We all have done it. When we do, we undermine our efforts to solve problems creatively. We quit on the task. Once under the dysfunctional spell of anger, we experience biased thinking and may see future efforts as futile. Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) teaches that at the base of this … Read more

Note: On Saturdays, I hold a free Zoom conversation hour where I take a volunteer and discuss one of their problems. If you have an emotional problem you would like to discuss with me, perhaps you will volunteer and I will show you how to think in a more effective way about your problem. I will … Read more

Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy is a philosophy of acceptance. It encourages you to apply flexible and non-extreme thinking to the cultivation of unconditional self, other, and life acceptance. This full acceptance of life and other people have some applicability to virtually all of life’s many problems. From birth to death, loss, failure, and disappointment are part of … Read more

Let us be honest with each other. Mother Nature screwed up when she made human beings. She probably meant to create saints but failed miserably. Because she did, humans needed to develop ethical standards, laws, and other codes of conduct. If our nature were not to err in our interpersonal affairs, there would be no … Read more

Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy is a form of cognitive-behavioral therapy that can be extremely helpful for a person struggling with depression. Depression can be complex and have multiple layers to it. It is a common human experience and has been called the “common cold of mental illness.” I will explore what I call primary depression as … Read more

At the core of Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy’s theory of emotional disturbance is the concept of rigidity. Albert Ellis argued that we disturb ourselves when we hold rigid and extreme attitudes towards ourselves, others, and life conditions. From these rigid attitudes come extreme secondary attitudes that add to but do not lie at the core of our … Read more

In Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), I encourage you to learn to help yourself. To do so, you must reflect upon your emotional and behavioral reactions. I want you to know how to identify and replace your rigid and\or extreme attitudes, leading to your unhealthy, self-defeating emotions and behaviors. Over the years, REBT psychotherapists have … Read more