December 13th, 2001
1. All-or-nothing thinking. In this type of thinking, you're either a hero or a failure. Any small misstep marks you as a failure. This kind of thinking can lead to crippling perfectionism.
2. Overgeneralization. Whenever something bad happens, it's bound to happen again and again. If somebody you've idealized turns you down for a date, for example, you feel certain that the next person will, too.
3. The mental filter. You dwell on the downside of any situation while overlooking anything positive. If you're an editor, you may become obsessed with a typo that escaped into print rather than congratulating yourself for getting out a great issue.
4. Diminishing the positive. In this kind of thinking, you tend to twist positive events into negative ones. If you just got a raise, for example, you may put yourself down for not getting a bigger raise.
5. Jumping to conclusions. You become either a mind reader or a fortune teller -- whatever it takes to see trouble on the horizon. If a friend doesn't return a call, he secretly dislikes you. If you like your job, you'll probably lose it soon.
6. The binocular trick. It's as if you're wearing a special lenses that lets you see everything blown out of proportion. Little problems become monstrous; major victories, trifling.
7. Emotional reasoning. You believe mood reflects your true identity: You feel lousy because you are lousy.
8. 'Should' and 'must' thoughts. You constantly remind yourself of things you should or must do. (One expert calls this "musterbation.") At the end of the day, you feel buried in guilt and shame. You may also dwell on things that other people should or must do, setting yourself up for frustration and bitterness.
9. Labeling and mislabeling. You tend to equate your 'self' with what you do, and since everyone makes mistakes, over time you develop a negative self-image based on errors you've made. If you invested in a high-tech stock deal that blew up in your face, for example, you view yourself as a failure. Failure, loser, dummy: The labels stick. If you tend to label other people as well, you'll reap a lot of hostility.
10. Personalization. You assume responsibility for anything that goes wrong, even when it's not your fault. Burns calls this line of thinking "the mother of guilt."
by Chris Woolston (http://www.buildingbetterhealth.com/topic/depneg)
2. Overgeneralization. Whenever something bad happens, it's bound to happen again and again. If somebody you've idealized turns you down for a date, for example, you feel certain that the next person will, too.
3. The mental filter. You dwell on the downside of any situation while overlooking anything positive. If you're an editor, you may become obsessed with a typo that escaped into print rather than congratulating yourself for getting out a great issue.
4. Diminishing the positive. In this kind of thinking, you tend to twist positive events into negative ones. If you just got a raise, for example, you may put yourself down for not getting a bigger raise.
5. Jumping to conclusions. You become either a mind reader or a fortune teller -- whatever it takes to see trouble on the horizon. If a friend doesn't return a call, he secretly dislikes you. If you like your job, you'll probably lose it soon.
6. The binocular trick. It's as if you're wearing a special lenses that lets you see everything blown out of proportion. Little problems become monstrous; major victories, trifling.
7. Emotional reasoning. You believe mood reflects your true identity: You feel lousy because you are lousy.
8. 'Should' and 'must' thoughts. You constantly remind yourself of things you should or must do. (One expert calls this "musterbation.") At the end of the day, you feel buried in guilt and shame. You may also dwell on things that other people should or must do, setting yourself up for frustration and bitterness.
9. Labeling and mislabeling. You tend to equate your 'self' with what you do, and since everyone makes mistakes, over time you develop a negative self-image based on errors you've made. If you invested in a high-tech stock deal that blew up in your face, for example, you view yourself as a failure. Failure, loser, dummy: The labels stick. If you tend to label other people as well, you'll reap a lot of hostility.
10. Personalization. You assume responsibility for anything that goes wrong, even when it's not your fault. Burns calls this line of thinking "the mother of guilt."
by Chris Woolston (http://www.buildingbetterhealth.com/topic/depneg)
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