______________________ Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy: Theory, Techniques, and Applications, 3rd Edition
EXAMPLES OF COVID-19 RELATED ERRORS IN THINKING
Thinking Error
Thought
Examining Thought
He has worked for three months in these circumstances and not gotten sick. Are there exceptions to these absolutes? Am I making this personal when it is not?
Fortune telling (predicting that the future will result in negative events)
“My husband works in a hospital and is around people every day, including sick people. We’re just sitting ducks, waiting to get sick. It’s like playing COVID roulette every day. We ever know when we’re going to get sick and die.” What if my mother-in-law dies of COVID, and she dies alone? We never get to see her again. What if we run out of my supply of 100 rolls of toilet paper? My cousin’s friend’s college-aged son tested positive for COVID. It’s in our community and now our circle. It’s only time before I get it.
Is this thought helpful? Is this under your control?
“What if?” (ruminating about what could happen)
Is this thought accurate? Evidence for belief? Anecdotes are powerful emotionally, but perhaps not accurate. What evidence is missing? Allowing you to jump to conclusions.
Overgeneralizing (assuming that a negative outcome will occur in many situations after having experienced a negative result following only one incident)
I’m so anxious. I can’t sleep. My body’s keeping me geared up. This is bad. We’re all in danger.
Is it really in my control?
Emotional reasoning (allowing emotions to set one’s perception of reality, such as “I feel anxious; therefore, this must be a dangerous situation”) Catastrophizing (believing that events will ultimately result in unbearable outcomes)
The expert on the TV said to get ready, this is only going to get worse. More sick. More deaths. No vaccine in sight. I just don’t see an end to this. Or I couldn’t smell my coffee this morning. I’ve had a headache for a week. What if I have COVID? I’m so worried. Or I know I’m young and healthy, but I am overweight. What if I get it and end up on a ventilator, unable to breathe? Spending hours doing research on COVID online and listening to 24-hour news.
How do I know if this thought is accurate? What evidence do I have? Solid truth. Eliminate politics. How can I test my assumptions? Am I blaming myself unnecessarily?
Negative filtering (focusing on nega- tives and rarely noticing positives)
Know real facts? Political leanings? Even if accurate, is that how you want to spend your life? What positives are you experiencing in this situation? Unreasonable or double standard? What would I say to a friend in this situ- ation? Can I look for shades of grey? Table 2
I should be happy to spend time with my children, to have them home safe.
“Shoulds” (interpreting events on the basis of how one believes they “should” be as opposed to focusing on what the events actually are)
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