Errors in logic are simply thinking errors (cognitive distortions). By identifying these thinking errors and testing them as hypotheses rather then facts, we can investigate and challenge these negative thoughts to see if they are indeed logical. Alternative ways of thinking can be substituted for the original negative automatic thoughts which are more balanced, and reflect the persons experience more accurately.
Here are a list of the 10 most common cognitive distortions that form the basis of all depression:
1) Dichotomous reasoning (black or white/all-or-nothing)
2) Overgeneralisation
3) Selective abstraction (mental filter)
4) Discounting the positive
5) Arbitrary inference (jumping to conclusions)
6) Magnification/minimisation (binocular trick)
7) Emotional Reasoning
8) Shoulds ("musturbation")
9) Global judgements
10) Personalisation
Over the next 10 posts I will be looking at each of these individual thinking errors and explaining what they mean so we can look at ways to challenge them. This should help to stop some of your negative thoughts as you will begin to see that a lot of them are completely illogical, and hopefully this will begin to make you feel better!
Friday, 26 August 2011
Tuesday, 23 August 2011
YouthNoise
I just thought I would let you know of a really cool website I came across on the internet. It is called www.youthnoise.com and it is an American website that aims to "empower young leaders to act for the causes they care about locally and nationally". I have very recently become one of their featured bloggers and I wrote my first post the other day! I think it is a great idea to have a specific place for young people to blog about the things they are interested in and it is a place where us young people feel that we have a voice and are actually listened to; there is also a real sense of community even though the users are worldwide! I have read a number of the blog posts and I have been able to search for blogs on things that interest me, and so far I have been really impressed!
Wednesday, 17 August 2011
Thursday, 4 August 2011
Create a Continuum
Many teens (including me) have an unrealistic view of themselves, or situations that they are in. They usually have extreme, black and white views, magnifying every detail of the problem and they can't recognise anything in-between. This is where creating a 'continuum' can be an extremely helpful tool in distinguishing how 'bad' something is, or to what extent it is 'bad'. It can help you to review your understanding of worth, goodness or weakness.
To explain what exactly a 'continuum' is, lets take an example of a teenager with severe feelings of guilt, and they believe themselves to be the most evil person in the world.
They should begin with a straight line representing the extremes of good and evil - good at one end, and evil at the other. Then, they should place an X on the line representing where they see themselves and it is likely that they would put the X nearest the evil end. They should contemplate their own, personal evil attributes, before putting other evil characters on the continuum. Adolf Hitler or Josef Stalin may be interesting individuals to consider. The teenager will then probably find themselves having to extend the line to accommodate the newcomers. Then they should fill in the extreme good end of the scale, writing people down that they admire, who they know. Then what about placing other more famous people, such as Mother Teresa. They'll probably need to extend the continuum in the opposite direction. Then finally they should put down other friends and acquaintances in the continuum as well.
At the end of this process, the teenager may still not like themselves very much, but at least they should begin to question their assumptions of being the most evil person on the planet.
You can also use this method to asses how bad situations actually are that you find extremely difficult and it will help you to put many things in your life into perspective. Don't just try to visualise it in your head, writing it down is much more effective as you will see the full picture and it will help you to view things in context.
To explain what exactly a 'continuum' is, lets take an example of a teenager with severe feelings of guilt, and they believe themselves to be the most evil person in the world.
They should begin with a straight line representing the extremes of good and evil - good at one end, and evil at the other. Then, they should place an X on the line representing where they see themselves and it is likely that they would put the X nearest the evil end. They should contemplate their own, personal evil attributes, before putting other evil characters on the continuum. Adolf Hitler or Josef Stalin may be interesting individuals to consider. The teenager will then probably find themselves having to extend the line to accommodate the newcomers. Then they should fill in the extreme good end of the scale, writing people down that they admire, who they know. Then what about placing other more famous people, such as Mother Teresa. They'll probably need to extend the continuum in the opposite direction. Then finally they should put down other friends and acquaintances in the continuum as well.
At the end of this process, the teenager may still not like themselves very much, but at least they should begin to question their assumptions of being the most evil person on the planet.
You can also use this method to asses how bad situations actually are that you find extremely difficult and it will help you to put many things in your life into perspective. Don't just try to visualise it in your head, writing it down is much more effective as you will see the full picture and it will help you to view things in context.
Friday, 29 July 2011
Having A Hobbie
A very successful way to reduce the impact of stress is to get a hobbie! So simple, yet so effective.
Doing something you enjoy will help to boost your mood, and hopefully this will help you to see things in a different light and you will realise that perhaps life isn't so bad. Relaxing in this way may even give you the energy to do some of those things which you hate dong but have to do. Maybe spend a day with a friend trying out each others hobbies, you might just find something that you love which you never thought you would! This was certainly the case for me when my friend introduced me to karate! It's the summer holidays now for most of us, so I hope that this will inspire you to get out there and do something you know you enjoy, or to try something new!
Many teens (including myself!) think that they are too busy to spend the time participating in extra activities, and may believe it will lead them to become more stressed. There is some truth in this because obviously if you take part in lots of additional interests, you may find that you don't have enough time to complete the things in life that you have to do, such as school work etc. However, involving yourself in one or two extra activities that you enjoy, can be a very efficient way to relax. Don't worry if you find it hard to relax at first, it is a skill that needs to be learned.
Apart from going out with my friends, some of my favourite hobbies are painting, writing and singing. During school term times, I do have to limit myself on how much time I spend doing these activities, although I always make sure that I have a slot each week to do one of them. In the holidays I have a lot more spare time to do these things and to try out new activities too, such as fishing which surprisingly I really enjoy! When I am participating in these interests, I find that I forget about the other things that are worrying me as I am concentrating on something else.
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| Here is my painting of Marilyn Monroe |
Sunday, 24 July 2011
Talking and Writing - Stress Off-loaders!
I find it incredibly helpful to talk about the things I struggle with. Since starting this blog, I think I have improved the way I am because I am talking about the things I find difficult. I am writing about ideas to help stop stress and anxiety, and this is making me really think about, and formulate workable techniques that everyone can use.
Before I started the blog though, I was fortunate because I had (and I still have) a network of people around me - friends and family - that I could talk to. However, I know I have said it before and I'll say it again, but it is very hard to open up to someone about everything. Generally though, I did talk about my biggest problems, but it was my thoughts and feelings about those problems that I struggled to disclose. I guess this was because I thought that people will always judge, even if they say they won't - its automatic. I read somewhere that judging things/people/situations is an automatic survival instinct.
So as well as talking to people as much as I could bring myself to, I also did a lot of writing. I really love writing, so maybe this is easier for me than it will be for others. I tried to write a diary everyday, but I found that this was extremely time consuming and hard to keep up. I did manage to do it for a year but there were huge chunks missing! This year I tried to do it again, but I got to March and haven't written any more since! I think if you are able to do it, diary writing is a good idea because you are able to keep track of everything that is happening in your life as it happens and you are keeping a constant record of your feelings, so you can see how they develop and change. This can help you to make informed decisions in future if you come across a similar situation as you have the details of exactly how you felt.
Another thing I like to do is throughout the year I will collect little notes about things or objects that act as memory-triggers. I collect them up and keep them in a box, then at the end of each year I write an 'overview of my year'. I started this four years ago and have managed to do it every year since. My 'overviews' started off brief but have gradually got longer as I like to keep a more in-depth record of things. The only problem with using this technique is that I can only write about the events that happened, I won't always remember my exact thoughts and feelings, but I still find it very interesting to write and remember important happenings. At the end of each year, after I have written my 'overview', I read last years one to see how my life has improved/changed. I think that doing this has helped me to develop as a person, and even if I feel like I have had a really rubbish year I will always find many positive things that happened too and this helps me to realise that it wasn't so bad after all. Often we tend to remember the bad experiences over the good, but using this technique helps you to think about and remember them all!
Before I started the blog though, I was fortunate because I had (and I still have) a network of people around me - friends and family - that I could talk to. However, I know I have said it before and I'll say it again, but it is very hard to open up to someone about everything. Generally though, I did talk about my biggest problems, but it was my thoughts and feelings about those problems that I struggled to disclose. I guess this was because I thought that people will always judge, even if they say they won't - its automatic. I read somewhere that judging things/people/situations is an automatic survival instinct.
So as well as talking to people as much as I could bring myself to, I also did a lot of writing. I really love writing, so maybe this is easier for me than it will be for others. I tried to write a diary everyday, but I found that this was extremely time consuming and hard to keep up. I did manage to do it for a year but there were huge chunks missing! This year I tried to do it again, but I got to March and haven't written any more since! I think if you are able to do it, diary writing is a good idea because you are able to keep track of everything that is happening in your life as it happens and you are keeping a constant record of your feelings, so you can see how they develop and change. This can help you to make informed decisions in future if you come across a similar situation as you have the details of exactly how you felt.
Another thing I like to do is throughout the year I will collect little notes about things or objects that act as memory-triggers. I collect them up and keep them in a box, then at the end of each year I write an 'overview of my year'. I started this four years ago and have managed to do it every year since. My 'overviews' started off brief but have gradually got longer as I like to keep a more in-depth record of things. The only problem with using this technique is that I can only write about the events that happened, I won't always remember my exact thoughts and feelings, but I still find it very interesting to write and remember important happenings. At the end of each year, after I have written my 'overview', I read last years one to see how my life has improved/changed. I think that doing this has helped me to develop as a person, and even if I feel like I have had a really rubbish year I will always find many positive things that happened too and this helps me to realise that it wasn't so bad after all. Often we tend to remember the bad experiences over the good, but using this technique helps you to think about and remember them all!
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| Picture source: http://webstuff4writers.com |
Tuesday, 19 July 2011
Removing Yourself From The Situation
Today I have learnt first hand that removing yourself from an explosive situation is an effective step in resolving the problem. Notice that I used the word step. Simply removing yourself from the difficult circumstance will not resolve it, but it will mean that you will have the space to think more clearly, away from the heat of the moment. The ability to review the situation in a calmer manner is an essential part of the process of finding a solution and coming to a compromise.
When you get into an argument, you are fighting for your point of view, and everything you say seems rational in your mind. From my perspective, I know that I can argue for England and I can be extremely forceful about it, not letting others get a word in edgeways. When I am arguing I always think that I am completely right - otherwise I wouldn't be arguing about it! Even when I begin to realise that maybe I'm not so right, I hate backing down and admitting that I'm wrong. I am completely unable to swallow my pride.
That's why today I found removing myself from the situation for a few hours so helpful. I went and did something fun to take my mind of the situation for a while, but it also meant that when I was ready I was able to reflect on what had happened and the way I had behaved. Talking about it with the people I was with helped too, as they were able to give their insight on what had happened. It made me see that perhaps I over-reacted slightly because I was so caught up in defending my point of view. I got far to worked up about such a small thing, and the situation escalated because of my angry, defensive reaction. After taking myself out of the tense atmosphere for a while, I was able to return to the house in a much more relaxed state of mind. It took a lot for me to do what I did next - because I HATE apologising - but that is exactly what I did. Its not an easy thing to do at all, but that one word really can have so much meaning (if of course you do actually mean it). Sometimes though, that isn't quite the end of it, and you may be asked to explain exactly what you are sorry for. This takes even more courage because it is admitting you are wrong and explaining it specifically, which is extremely difficult for any human being to do! But I proved today that it really can be done. If you can't bring yourself to say sorry, then maybe a compromise can be more easily reached when you are in a calmer state!
When you get into an argument, you are fighting for your point of view, and everything you say seems rational in your mind. From my perspective, I know that I can argue for England and I can be extremely forceful about it, not letting others get a word in edgeways. When I am arguing I always think that I am completely right - otherwise I wouldn't be arguing about it! Even when I begin to realise that maybe I'm not so right, I hate backing down and admitting that I'm wrong. I am completely unable to swallow my pride.
That's why today I found removing myself from the situation for a few hours so helpful. I went and did something fun to take my mind of the situation for a while, but it also meant that when I was ready I was able to reflect on what had happened and the way I had behaved. Talking about it with the people I was with helped too, as they were able to give their insight on what had happened. It made me see that perhaps I over-reacted slightly because I was so caught up in defending my point of view. I got far to worked up about such a small thing, and the situation escalated because of my angry, defensive reaction. After taking myself out of the tense atmosphere for a while, I was able to return to the house in a much more relaxed state of mind. It took a lot for me to do what I did next - because I HATE apologising - but that is exactly what I did. Its not an easy thing to do at all, but that one word really can have so much meaning (if of course you do actually mean it). Sometimes though, that isn't quite the end of it, and you may be asked to explain exactly what you are sorry for. This takes even more courage because it is admitting you are wrong and explaining it specifically, which is extremely difficult for any human being to do! But I proved today that it really can be done. If you can't bring yourself to say sorry, then maybe a compromise can be more easily reached when you are in a calmer state!
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| Picture source: http://www.totallifecounseling.com |
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