More CBT goodness :)

Here's the latest installment in my series of CBT stuff which is part of my Crusade to Help the World!

Ahem. ;)

This is the next step after learning what kind of "automatic thoughts" we tend to indulge in.

For a quick definition of the different cognitive distortions, I'll refer you to This post.

This is what David Burns calls the "triple-column technique." It involves a bit of writing, and a lot of practice, but you can basically do this exercise in about fifteen minutes each day.

Step one: Take a piece of paper and divide it into three columns.

Label the first "Automatic Thought." Label the second "Cognitive Distortion." Label the third "Rational Response."

What you're doing now is the first step in "talking back" to your "bad" thoughts.


Step two is to write down your automatic thoughts in the left-hand column. Say you're late for a meeting. You're gripped with panic and self-loathing. Stop for a minute and ask yourself: "What am I thinking? What thoughts are going through my head that are making me feel bad?"

You might think something like: "I'm always late. I never do anything right. Now they're all going to look down on me and think I'm unreliable. I'll make a fool of myself. I'm such an idiot!"

So write each sentence separately and leave lots of room in the other columns to make sure you'll have space to write.


Step three: look at the Cognitive Distortions list and try to identify what's wrong with your thoughts.

Going back to the example.

I'm always late. overgeneralisation

I never do anything right. ]overgeneralisation

Now they're all going to look down on me and think I'm unreliable. mind reading; overgeneralisation; all-or-nothing thinking; fortune teller error

I'll make a fool of myself. labelling; fortune teller error

I'm such an idiot! labelling

Step four: This is the more difficult part, but it gets easier with practice. Now what you want to do is find a rational response to those thoughts, what Burns describes as "substituting a more rational, less upsetting thought" for the one you have in the right-hand column.

Don't worry if at first you can't find a response to every single thought. Even getting one done is a big step. When you can't find a response, just leave that one alone and come back to it in a few days.

Let's go back to the example, shall we?

I'm always late. Response:] That's silly. I'm not always late. Look at all the times where I've been punctual. If lately I've been tardy more often than I'd like, then I can work on that and devise a method for being on time more often.

I never do anything right. Response: That's hardly true. I do a lot of things right.

Now they're all going to look down on me and think I'm unreliable.
Response: Someone might be disappointed that I'm late, but it's not the end of the world. The meeting might not even start on time.

I'll make a fool of myself. Response: Oh come, now. I'm not a "fool." I may, this once, appear foolish by coming late, but this doesn't make me a fool. Everyone comes in late once in a while, and not everyone's a fool.

I'm such an idiot. Response: That's just silly. I'm not an idiot at all, and certainly being late doesn't make me one.

A word of caution from Dr. Burns: Writing down yor negative thoughts and rational responses may strike you as simplistic, ineffective, or even gimmicky. You might share the feelings of some patients who initially refused to do this, saying, "What's the point? It won't work —it couldn't because I really am hopeless and worthless."

This attitude can only serve as a self-defeating prophecy. If you are unwilling to pick up the tool and use it, you won't be able to do the job.

It seems a little harsh, but essentially what he means is "don't knock it until you've tried it."

It may not be the solution to the world's problems, but it certainly doesn't hurt, and even helps a lot. :D

Daphne

Good day, and good mental health! ^_-

Yeah, yeah, so we've all heard this before

Most of you know by now that my LJ username is actually the result of a mistake. Back when I was completely technologically challenged (as opposed to now when I'm actually only partially technologically challenged) I created this account, meaning to put my username as "Bookworm."

I then proceeded to mix up the username and journal name categories, and presto! Instant daphneb!

So I want to rename my LJ. "Bookworm" is already taken, as is "Daphne" (some annoying early adopter who never actually wrote in her LJ but didn't delete it either, damn her). Tonight I'm lacking in inspiration, so I thought I'd open the question up to the public. There's a poll here for "serious" suggestions, and for all the inevitable smutty jokes I'll leave the comments section open. ^_-

Have at it, folks!


[Poll #89853]

Brave new Phnee

This certainly seems to be a time for changes, even if they're small. Changing my username, getting my hair chopped off after seven years of having it below shoulder length, possibly changing jobs (I'll be noodling about that in a later entry when I have my head wrapped around it properly).

And it's not even the middle of January.

I am Phnee. Hear me roar!

:::edit:::

I refuse to spam LJ even more, so I'm just going to continue my thoughts in here. Hah! *smugness ensues*

I have nothing of interest to say, actually (one of the reasons I'm not creating a new entry), save that I have found something even more evil and laziness-inducing than KD, which is Gattuso instant snacks. All you do is add 280ml of boiling water to a packet of noodles and powdered cheese and voilà! Instant dinner! It's actually not bad-tasting. You don't quite get the creamy goodness that's produced by the quarter cup (!) of butter you put in KD, but otherwise it's about the same.

Have had a semi-productive day. If my other days go like this, all the things I wanted to get done this week should actually get done. Go me!