cognitive distortions
What are Cognitive Distortions?
distorted or exaggerated thoughts or thinking patterns
not based on facts or the full truth / reality
tend to be negative or fear triggering
also called ‘unhelpful thinking styles or patterns’
can create significant or persistent anxiety issues
an experience that we all have at some time or another!
Types of Cognitive Distortions:
Catastrophizing - thinking or assuming the worst when the facts are uncertain, unknown or can’t be known
All or Nothing Thinking - also known as ‘black & white thinking’ or polarized thinking, only looking at things as absolute / one way or the other
Overgeneralization - viewing one negative event or detail as an ongoing pattern of negativity or defeat
Mental Filtering - running your thoughts through a negative filter persistently (filter examples are “I am just terrible at relationships”, “I can’t do anything right”) and then putting all incoming data through that filter)
Discounting the Positives - insisting that positive information or qualities about yourself don’t matter and that only the negative ones count
Jumping to Conclusions - also known as ‘mind reading’, assuming that people are reacting negatively to you or think negative things about you even with no definitive evidence of this; can also be called ‘fortune telling’ - consistently predicting things will turn out negatively
Magnification or Minimization - blowing things way out of proportion or alternative reducing their importance inappropriately
Emotional Reasoning - reasoning or justifying based on how you feel - “I feel like such a failure, so I must be”
Labeling - labeling or identifying yourself by negative attributes (“I’m such a loser”, “ I am so stupid”)
‘Should’ing Ourselves’ - criticizing or berating ourselves with ‘should statements’ that are not merited or overloaded (“I should have the house completely clean”, “I should be smarter”, “I should have accomplished more work this week”, ‘shouldn’t, have to, must and ought’ can also fall into this category
Personalization & Blame - blaming yourself for things you aren’t responsible or fully responsible for (or blaming others in the same way)
What are some ways to manage or reduce Cognitive Distortions?
First of all - recognizing when they occur; taking a pause and reflecting on what’s going on in your mind when are feeling agitated, uncomfortable or stuck in a negative mental space
Try to identify if a thought distortion might be occurring and then which distortion or unhelpful thinking style might be happening
Next, examine the evidence for this thought… and then the evidence against it
Then try to restructure a more balanced and realistic, logical thought. (for example: “I’m feeling like a really failed that presentation because I stumbled on my words a bit but I am receiving some praise from my colleagues so it must not have been that bad”)
Use the ‘CBT Thought Diary’ below to help with this process
All of these steps take practice… using the ‘CBT Thought Diary’ is especially helpful when starting to work on shifting your thought patterns. The link provided will take you to a printable version I created that is simple and basic. The idea is that you write down and record in the diary for awhile - and then eventually you are able to mentally run through the process quickly without pen and paper.
Hope this is all helpful…. and remember that we ALL experience distorted thinking in our lives!!!
Best,Jenn
*The information presented in this blog is intended for general knowledge and use only. It should not take the place of medical, clinical advice or licensed therapy. To find a licensed practitioner in your area, the Psychology Today Directory is an excellent resource.