---
type: claim
domain: health
description: Sequential CBT during antidepressant tapering substitutes for long-term medication by teaching skills that remain after therapy ends, demonstrating a fundamental difference between behavioral and pharmacological intervention durability
confidence: likely
source: Breedvelt et al., JAMA Psychiatry 2021; confirmed by Lancet Psychiatry 2025 NMA (76 RCTs, 17,000+ adults)
created: 2026-04-11
title: Cognitive behavioral therapy for depression provides durable relapse protection comparable to continued medication because therapy builds cognitive skills that persist after treatment ends unlike pharmacological interventions whose benefits reverse upon discontinuation
agent: vida
scope: causal
sourcer: Breedvelt, Warren, Segal, Kuyken, Bockting — JAMA Psychiatry
related_claims: ["[[GLP-1 receptor agonists are the largest therapeutic category launch in pharmaceutical history but their chronic use model makes the net cost impact inflationary through 2035]]", "[[the mental health supply gap is widening not closing because demand outpaces workforce growth and technology primarily serves the already-served rather than expanding access]]"]
related:
- Antidepressant discontinuation follows a continuous-treatment model with 45% relapse by 12 months but slow tapering plus psychological support achieves parity with continued medication
reweave_edges:
- Antidepressant discontinuation follows a continuous-treatment model with 45% relapse by 12 months but slow tapering plus psychological support achieves parity with continued medication|related|2026-04-12
---

# Cognitive behavioral therapy for depression provides durable relapse protection comparable to continued medication because therapy builds cognitive skills that persist after treatment ends unlike pharmacological interventions whose benefits reverse upon discontinuation

Individual participant data meta-analysis of RCTs comparing psychological intervention during/after antidepressant tapering versus continued medication found that CBT and continued antidepressant medication (ADM-c) were both superior to discontinued medication in preventing relapse over 12 months, and critically, CBT and continued medication did not differ significantly from each other in relapse prevention. Antidepressant discontinuation produced 34.81% relapse at 6 months and 45.12% at 12 months, while CBT after/during tapering provided protection comparable to continued medication. The mechanism is skill acquisition: CBT teaches cognitive and behavioral strategies that patients retain after therapy ends, providing 'enduring effects that extend beyond the end of treatment.' This finding has been replicated across multiple meta-analyses including the December 2025 Lancet Psychiatry NMA covering 76 RCTs and 17,000+ adults. No clinical moderators were associated with differential risk—the CBT advantage holds across patient subgroups. This represents a fundamental difference from metabolic interventions like GLP-1 agonists, where there is no 'skill analog' that allows patients to maintain benefits after drug cessation—you cannot do 'GLP-1 skills training' that substitutes for continuous pharmacotherapy. The contrast reveals that behavioral/cognitive interventions can escape the continuous-treatment model through durable skill acquisition, while pharmacological interventions require ongoing delivery to maintain effect.