Help CenterThinking traps, also known as automatic negative thoughts or cognitive distortions, are automatic irrational or negative thought patterns that can lead us to believe things that aren’t necessarily true. Learning to notice them and challenge them with more reasonable and rational thoughts is a life skill that we can all use! Let's work through it.
Here's an example of how this might unfold.
- A situation triggers an automatic thought.
- We then, attribute meaning to it, which triggers emotion(s), which influence(s) what we do or don't do as a result.
We can learn to notice the ANTs and challenge them like this. Notice how the challenge to the thought creates a casacade of more helpful responses.
Your turn:
Let's work through your situation...
Here's your chance to challenge your ANTs....
What's your takeaway from this exercise?