Anxiety: Ways to Challenge Self-Defeating Beliefs
Self-defeating beliefs may create or exacerbate anxiety. Below is a list of self-defeating beliefs that lead to anxious thoughts and ways to overcome them.
Filtering: Focusing on the negative to the exclusion of the positive.
Solution: When youre thinking/feeling bad, try to do the opposite.
Black & White Thinking: Things are good or bad its all or nothing with no middle ground.
Solution: Look for the exception to your point of view yes, but.
. .
Overgeneralization:Exaggerating or taking things to the extreme.
Solution: Avoid words such as: always, never, every, all, none, everybody, and nobody. Question the extremes. Is there any time that is not true?
Mind Reading: Making assumptions about an outcome or someones motivation.
Solution: Can you really know whats going to happen or why something happens? What another persons intentions are? How can you know for sure? What are other possibilities?
Catastrophizing:AKA awfulizing expecting and projecting the worst.
Solution: Remember that there is usually more than one possible outcome and the worst catastrophe usually does not happen.
Personalization:Its all about me my fault I did it wrong they hate me I am the only one who can do this.
Solution: How do you know? Prove it, or consider other possibilities. Let others take ownership.
Control Fallacies:Either you have no control or you can control everything.
Solution: Let go of what you cant control and be realistic about what you really can control.
Fallacy of Fairness:You think everything should be fair.
Solution: Life is not fair. Accepting this will help you have more realistic expectations.
Blaming: You dont take responsibility for your choices and project fault onto others.
Solution: Take responsibility for your choices, including your feelings. Nobody else can make you feel or do anything. How you feel or react is up to you. Blame isnt necessary/helpful - it is what it is.
Shoulds: Words like should, ought, and must foster impossible expectations and often result in disappointment, resentment, and failure.
Solution: Flexibility is the key here. Give yourself and others the benefit of the doubt.
Emotional Reasoning: A belief that your emotions are based in truth.
Solution: Challenge emotions with logic. Look for exceptions that are reasonable
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