# Recognizing and Dealing with Negative Automatic Thoughts

Inspired by this [post](https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/HpHnMEiHYzSZiYk6g/failing-with-abandon), which is point 3 on the list below, but I can't comment there, so a separate post it is. Copied from [here](https://justpaste.it/1gnh3). Basically, this is cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) in a nutshell.

**Recognizing Negative Automatic Thoughts**
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1.  **Overgeneralization**: making a general conclusion based on one piece of evidence.   
    *Daniel gets a high glucose reading and thinks “I will never get my numbers under control.”*
2.  **Filtering**: Focusing on negative events, and ignoring positive events, or information that contradicts the negative outlook.   
    *Jo has done really well at following her diet plan all week, but at a work party, she eats more dessert than she should. Later, she reflects on her dessert choices and thinks, “I always fail at sticking to my plan, this is pretty hopeless.”*
3.  **All or nothing thinking**: Thinking that there are only two extremes, with no middle ground.   
    *Daniel is in a rush in the morning and doesn’t eat breakfast, so his numbers are off throughout the day. He thinks “Well, I’ve already screwed up, no point in continuing to try at this point.”*
4.  **Personalizing**: Taking responsibility for something that is not your fault.   
    *Jo is at her doctor’s appointment, but because the office is behind schedule, she does not get answers to all of her questions. When she leaves, she thinks, “Wow, I can’t even ask questions correctly. I don’t do any of this right.”*
5.  **Catastrophizing**: Expecting that the worst will happen.   
    *Daniel is preparing for vacation with his family. He decides not to make a plan to manage his diabetes while on the trip, because, “It’s not like I’ll stick to it at all anyway, because there won’t be any healthy food on the trip.”*
6.  **Emotional reasoning**: Mistaking how you feel about a situation with how the situation really is.   
    *Jo weighs herself after a couple weeks of working out daily, only to find that her weight has not changed. She feels like nothing she’s doing is working and thinks, “I shouldn’t keep trying, because nothing is changing.”*
7.  **Mind reading**: Thinking you know how another person thinks or feels about you without checking evidence from their actions.  
    *Daniel’s doctor is very rushed during his next appointment. Daniel thinks, “She must not like me because I’m not doing good enough at managing my diabetes.*
8.  **Fortune Telling Error**: Anticipating negative outcomes and then thinking your anticipation is fact.  
    *Right after Jo was diagnosed with diabetes, her thoughts were often along the lines of “There’s no point in trying to get this under control because I’m going to fail.”*
9.  **Should statements**: Using the words “should” or “must” can set up unrealistic expectations and difficult rules to stick to.  
    *Right after Daniel was diagnosed he thought, “I should never eat desserts again.”*
10.  **Magnification/Minimization**: Emphasizing the impact of negative events, while downplaying the importance of positive events  
    *Jo overemphasizes the times that her numbers are too high and ignores the more frequent times that she is able to keep her numbers under control.*

**Reframing Automatic Negative Thoughts**
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1.  **Challenge your thoughts.** Remember: thinking something does not make it true.  
    *Daniel starts thinking that there’s no reason to come up with a plan for managing diabetes on his vacation, because he knows there will be no healthy food options available on the trip. He thinks it will be too difficult to try to stick to his diet while eating out as often as he will on vacation. However, he soon realizes this is a negative thought. He realizes it is not helpful to think about the vacation or his management goals in this way.*  
    Can you come up with another challenge to this thought?
2.  **Next, look for evidence.** Acknowledge any evidence in favor of your thoughts, but then ask yourself if you’re ignoring evidence that contradicts your thoughts. Be sure you have considered all the facts.  
    *Daniel takes a step back and looks more closely at his vacation plans. He realizes that he is focusing on the fact that he will be eating out more often, rather than learning what restaurants will have options that help him stick to his diet plan.*
3.  **Then, search for alternatives.** Try to look at the situation from another perspective. Ask yourself if your thinking is becoming too inflexible.  
    *Daniel decides to make a list of possible outcomes besides just eating out anywhere on vacation. First, he considers only choosing restaurants that offer salad entrees or salad bars. Then, he considers the possibility of bringing food and having picnics on the road. Finally, he considers making meals in his hotel.*  
    Can you come up with another alternative?
4.  **After considering alternatives, make sure to put the whole thing in perspective.** Consider what the worst possible outcome could be.  
    *Daniel decides to develop a strong plan for while on vacation. However, he also decides to acknowledge that the worst outcome would be a week off of his plan. He recognizes that even if he didn’t choose good restaurants during the week, one week off his plan at home does not mean he can’t get back in his good habits when he returns home.*
5.  **Finally, consider what a more helpful thought would be.** Ask yourself what a more helpful way to look at the situation would look like.  
    *Daniel sits back and considers that in the future he should start by considering how he can continue to manage his diabetes in new situations, rather than assuming that he will not be able to do so.*  
    Can you come up with another more helpful thought?