CBT is based on a simple but powerful principle: our thoughts influence our emotions and behaviors, and vice versa.
The central idea of cognitive behavioral therapy is that thoughts affect our emotions and moods, which in turn influence our behaviors. And in return, behaviors affect our emotions and thoughts. In fact, each component has an effect on the others—you see the pattern!
It should be noted that depressed people tend to see only the negative in life. They suffer from what’s called Beck’s triad: seeing themselves negatively, seeing others just as negatively, and seeing the world in general as a hostile place!
The cognitive restructuring work we do with our clients aims to give people the tools to change their negative thoughts and replace them with more realistic and nuanced ones. Consequently, they improve their mood and behaviors and feel much better!
Automatic thoughts are the thoughts or images that go through our minds when an event occurs. They are so ingrained in us that we sometimes don’t realize we are thinking them. But every time there is an emotion, there’s a thought behind it. For example, my client told me that every time his boss called him into the office (situation), he felt nervous (emotion), and thought, "I must have done something wrong, I’m going to lose my job" (thoughts).
When someone is depressed, they tend to interpret reality negatively and inaccurately. We can say these people are negatively biased, which constantly reinforces their depressed mood. CBT will help you correct this tendency to only see the negative. There is a technique to learn to correct this tendency: it involves re-evaluating our thoughts.
There are many ways to interpret reality. When we're depressed, we may conclude that a situation is unfavorable, unfair, or hostile, but we must ask ourselves whether it could be interpreted differently. You have to play both roles: prosecutor and defense attorney. As the prosecutor, you must find evidence supporting your negative thought ("I’m going to lose my job"). As the defense attorney, you must bring more nuanced arguments—counter-evidence. This way, you become the judge and search for the most plausible interpretation of reality. You then form a more accurate and balanced interpretation of reality, adopting what is called in CBT jargon a "substitute thought."
This is a very brief presentation of the cognitive restructuring exercise, but know that in practice it is very effective in regaining more accurate thinking and, as you can imagine, has a positive impact on mood and behavior.
Amélie, your mental health coach
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