Cognitive restructuring

Unhelpful thoughts produce negative emotions and behaviours. Often these thoughts can be extreme and inaccurate. However, this automatic process can be broken through awareness and thought restructuring.

Thoughts are often automatic, but you can learn to identify and alter these negative thoughts through monitoring.

The more aware you are of the way you think and the things you say to yourself in stressful circumstances, the better prepared you will be to think differently.

A good way to think of the relationships between thoughts and behaviours is through the ‘ABC’ model:

After you become aware of the thoughts and their resulting feelings and behaviours, you should examine and challenge those thoughts for evidence and accuracy.

Reality testing:

• What is the evidence for and against my thinking being true?
• What unhelpful thinking patterns are operating?
• What are facts and what are my feelings?

Putting it into perspective:

• Is it as bad as I’m making out?
• Is there anything good about this situation?
• How likely is it that the worst will happen?
• What is most likely to happen?

Alternative explanations:

• Are there any other possible reasons to explain this?
• Is there another way I could think about this?
• Is there a more helpful way of thinking about this?
• What would others think if they were in this kind of situation?
• Putting it into perspective:
• Is it as bad as I’m making out?
• Is there anything good about this situation?
• How likely is it that the worst will happen?
• What is most likely to happen?

Goal-directed thinking:

• Are my thoughts helping me to achieve my goals?
• What can I do that will help me deal with the problem?
• How can I minimise the negative effects?
• How can I think about this in a way that will help me to feel good about my life and myself?
• If it is something that has already happened, how could I do better next time?

Once you have challenged your unhelpful or negative thought, the final step is to replace the thought with more logical, positive or realistic ones. Check to see if there are new consequences (thoughts and beliefs) for your new thought.

For example, when you are bored you may say to yourself, ‘I’m all alone, life is awful’. This leads to feelings of uselessness, worthlessness and sadness, and even less motivation to do anything. Once you examine the thought you may find you have ‘catastrophised’ the situation and come to an overly negative conclusion. There is evidence of friends and family but you just haven’t called them. Try thinking ‘I’ve got friends I can call them now or I can just enjoy doing something by myself’. This might help you feel a bit more positive and in control, and motivated to act. We call these new thoughts alternate interpretations.