Cognitive Distortions: Understanding and Addressing Them

Introduction

• Pre-recorded as part of a live webinar
• CEUs available at AllCEUs.com/CBT-CEU

Key Objectives

• Definition of thinking errors (cognitive distortions)
• Different types of thinking errors
• Impact of cognitive distortions on stress, mood, and health
• Basic fears impacted by cognitive distortions (rejection, isolation, unknown, loss of control, failure)
• Strategies for identifying and addressing thinking errors
• How thinking errors impact people's recovery and stress levels

Importance of Addressing Cognitive Distortions

• Almost everyone occasionally uses cognitive distortions
• Reducing thinking errors can greatly reduce stress
• Stress reduction improves sleep, mood, and overall health
• Thinking errors increase the fight-or-flight response, impacting health negatively

Types of Cognitive Distortions

• All-or-None Thinking: Viewing situations in black-and-white categories
• Personalization: Attributing external events to oneself without evidence
• Overgeneralization: Making broad interpretations from a single or few events
• Catastrophizing: Expecting the worst-case scenario
• Emotional Reasoning: Assuming that negative emotions reflect the truth
• Mental Filter: Focusing solely on the negative aspects of an experience
• Disqualifying the Positive: Rejecting positive experiences by insisting they “don’t count”
• Jumping to Conclusions: Making negative interpretations without evidence
• Magnification and Minimization: Exaggerating or understating the importance of events
• Labeling and Mislabeling: Assigning labels to self or others based on single events

Causes and Impact of Thinking Errors

Causes

• Information processing shortcuts
• Mental noise and distractions
• Limited information processing capacity
• Emotional triggers and crisis situations
• Moral and social influences

Impact

• Trigger fight-or-flight response
• Cause mood disorders and exacerbate addictions
• Lead to depression, anxiety, and emotional distress
• Affect sleep and eating patterns
• Physical health issues (e.g., headaches, GI distress)
• Social withdrawal

Interventions for Addressing Cognitive Distortions

Awareness and Identification

• Helping clients become aware of their thinking errors
• Discussing how thinking errors increase stress and impact recovery

Cognitive Behavioral Strategies

• ABCDEs of CBT
  • Activating Event
  • Belief about the event
  • Consequences
  • Disputation of irrational thoughts
  • Evaluate the most productive outcome
• Encourage balanced self-description and acceptance of strengths and weaknesses
• Examine beliefs with questions:
  • What are the facts for and against my belief?
  • Is the belief based on facts or feelings?
  • Does the belief use any thinking errors?
  • What are some alternative explanations?
  • How does this belief help or hinder you in achieving your goals?

Developing Coping Skills

• Separate feelings from facts
• Mindfulness and distress tolerance techniques (urge surfing, grounding exercises)
• Emotional regulation and preparing ahead for known stressors
• Assertive communication and creating win-win scenarios

Practical Activities

• Coin toss activity to practice optimism
• Journal work to identify and challenge thinking errors

Closure and Additional Resources

• Importance of continuous practice in recognizing and challenging cognitive distortions
• Resources: YouTube videos on DBT skills, additional worksheets for journaling and identifying cognitive distortions
• Announcements: Upcoming conference, call for papers

Book Review: Self Esteem by Matthew McKay

• Provides practical tools to improve self-esteem
• Steps covered:
  • Uncovering negative self-statements
  • Creating positive self-statements
  • Letting go of judgemental thoughts
  • Acting in accordance with values
• Useful for both self-help and therapeutic settings
• Emphasizes self-compassion and realistic self-assessment