Cognitive distortions can affect your perception of reality

What are cognitive distortions? They’re faulty, irrational thinking patterns, which can cause you to make incorrect conclusions about reality.

The concept of cognitive distortion comes from the work of Albert Ellis, David Burns and Aaron Beck. This isn’t an original theory but based on many complex theories of mind and therapy. Basically, the theory states that you are what you think; that what you think affects your mood; and if you just change your thinking, then everything will be fine.

But mood and thinking are affected by what goes on at the subconscious level. Depression and other affective problems are far more complex than the cognitive behaviorists appreciate or understand. What you think does affect your mood, just as your mood can affect what you think. But cognitive behavior therapy fails to recognize the important role of the subconscious in thinking.

All the same, the following list of ten cognitive distortions is an excellent tool to learn.

1. All-or-Nothing Thinking:
John, a very hard worker, loses his job in a company merger. He concludes, “I’m a total failure.”  

2. Overgeneralization:
Linda invites a few friends over to her home for dinner but forgets to mark the date on her calendar. When her friends show up on the appointed day, she’s caught by surprise. She says, “I always screw things up.”  

3. Mental Filter:
Mary has received her final exam grades. She scored a 78% average. But she says, “If only I had worked harder, I could’ve gotten an average of 80%.”

4. Disqualifying the Positive:
Ted finished his painting for the art show. His friend, Rick, said to him, “That’s beautiful!” But Ted just brushes aside the compliment. He thinks Rick is just being kind.

5. Jumping to Conclusions:
Thomas is waiting for his date, Lucy, at a restaurant. She’s now twenty minutes late. Thomas thinks he must have done something wrong, and Lucy has stood him up. Meanwhile, Lucy is stuck in a subway delay.

6. Magnification and Minimization:
Scott begins to recite poetry at a conference. He stutters at the beginning because he’s nervous. But he finishes off very well. Scott even receives a standing ovation. But Scott can only focus on his false start and overlooks the audience’s overwhelming response. 

7. Emotional Reasoning:
Laura is feeling bored this afternoon. And so she tells herself, “I must be a boring person.”

8. Should Statements:
David is a few pounds overweight. He says, “I should exercise everyday.” Thinking this way usually results in guilt.

9. Labeling and Mislabeling:
Donna just cheated on her diet. Instead of putting her behaviour in perspective, she attaches an unhealthy label to herself by saying, “I’m a fat, lazy pig.”

10. Personalization:
Francis calls out “Hello!” to his buddy, Jim. But Jim, preoccupied with something, doesn’t respond. Francis concludes, “Jim doesn’t like me any more.”

Learn to correctly identify the cognitive distortions you engage in (and we ALL do it). Then you can refute the negative thinking. As you counter these cognitive distortions over and over again, they will slowly diminish over time and be automatically replaced by more rational, balanced thinking.

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