David D.
Burns MD, Ten Days to Self-Esteem
This
is a simple handout to help define and explain distorted thinking.
You FEEL
the way you THINK. Discussing this with girls and helping them to understand
this concept may help improve their self-image. Distorted thinking often
leads to low self-esteem.
When discussing this with girls, give examples to help them understand.
You may use the examples provided or select some of your own.
David Burns,
author of Ten Days to Self Esteem includes the following as examples
of distorted thinking:
- All or nothing thinking: You see only in black or white, absolute categories. (She is ALWAYS
late… I NEVER get to go anywhere…)
- Overgeneralization: You
see a negative event as never ending. (This will never change…)
- Mental Filter: You dwell on the negative and filter the positive.
- Discounting the positives: You insist accomplishments and positives don't count.
- Jumping to conclusions:
a. Mind reading: You assume people are reacting negatively to you.
b. Fortune telling: You predict things will turn out badly.
- Magnification or minimization: You
blow things out of proportion or minimize their significance.
- Emotional reasoning: You reason from how you feel. " I feel dumb so I must be dumb".
- "Should"
statements: You criticize yourself and others with "should's", "shouldn't's",
must's", "ought's".
- Labeling: Instead
of thinking, " I made a mistake," you tell yourself, "I'm
a loser."
- Blame: You blame yourself for something you weren't responsible for, or you
blame others.
