Think Again – Managing Unhelpful Thinking

Have you ever felt anxiety and worry about some action or behaviour you took that actually did not materialize into any of your anticipated consequences?

For example, an offhand comment you thought might’ve been misconstrued sets off a flurry of negative thoughts like fear of getting fired or some physical effect like anxiety-ridden insomnia.

Part of being human is this experience of negative thoughts that trigger anxiety. One psychological term for these is “unhelpful thought patterns”.

The unhelpful thinking style escalating a small incident into a big disaster  is called catastrophizing.

There are many types of unhelpful thinking styles and the first step to managing them is to recognize them for what they are: thinking traps that drag you down.

Here are ten common unhelpful thinking styles:

These unhelpful thinking styles cloud our thinking and our judgment. They can trigger heightened stress and anxiety. We can’t control our thoughts, but we can choose how we respond..

To read the full article on the strategies you can take to curb these unwelcome thoughts and to do about them, click here.

Everything you experience in life is filtered by your mind.  Getting to know your mind better and learning how to manage disruptive thoughts is a critical skill to develop.