AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |
Back to Blog
This is the reason we label these kinds of thoughts as negative or ‘unhelpful’. Yet, by believing in such a thought, you’re accidentally falling into the trap of anxiety. Although it’s completely normal to feel anxious if you believe you’re having a heart attack, if you look closely (and if you don’t have a physical condition), the likelihood of that thought being true is generally very low. With anxiety, for instance, if you notice your heart racing and have the thought: “I’ll have a heart attack!” this is likely to make you feel anxious. CBT believes that we feel anxious, sad or angry because of the thoughts (or images) triggered by the situations that make us feel anxious, sad or angry. If you missed our main article on CBT therapy for anxiety, let’s briefly refresh why thoughts are so crucial to our mental health. How do Thoughts Affect our Mental Health? This is why thinking errors are a critical component in increasing and maintaining our anxiety. For example, after our boss expresses dissatisfaction with our department’s performance, typical thinking errors that may arise could be: “She thinks I am rubbish” (Mind Reading) and “I will lose my job” (Catastrophising).īy falling trap of and believing these thinking errors are factual, we will sink deeper into the negative emotions associated with them, for example, worry, anxiety or fear. For instance, if we have a generally negative outlook on how others see us, it’s more likely that our thinking errors will confirm such negative expectations. They’re what makes the difference between seeing the glass half full or half empty.Ĭognitive distortions tend to be consistent with the expectations we have of a situation. Thinking errors play an essential role in keeping us anxious, low or frustrated. Please include attribution to with this graphic. This chain of events keeps us stuck in a vicious anxiety cycle, as the one below. This type of thinking then informs decisions on how to act, which are equally unhelpful. In anxiety, for instance, the unpleasant feelings are triggered by frequent negative and unbalanced thinking. Thinking errors, proposed initially by Aaron Beck (1963) (one of the leading CBT figures), are essential in how CBT works with anxiety and other issues.Īlthough we all fall prey to irrational and extreme thinking, Thinking Errors are a distinctive aspect of the everyday life of those who often experience unpleasant emotions. Anxiety, low mood, worry, anger management issues are often fuelled by this type of thinking. Thinking Errors – also known as Cognitive Distortions – are irrational and extreme ways of thinking that can maintain mental and emotional issues.
0 Comments
Read More
Leave a Reply. |