How to untwist our thinking Part 3

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DemonsInside

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The ABCDE Model:

A = Adversity
B = Belief
C = Consequences
D = Disputation
E = Energization


Adversity
1.) The objective description of what happened (not your interpretation to it.)

Beliefs
1.)Your beliefs are how you interpret the adversity.
2.)Be sure to separate thoughts from feelings (feelings are Consequences)
a.)You can check the accuracy of thoughts; you can't check the accuracy of feelings--if you feel sad, you are sad

Consequences

1.)Your feelings, and what you did.
a.)Often you will feel more than one thing
b.)Write down as many as you are aware of
2.)What did you do then?

Distraction and Disputation

1.)There are two ways to deal with pessimistic beliefs--distraction and disputation

A.)Distraction
1.)There are several simple but effective thought-stopping techniques
a.)Ringing a loud bell
b.)Carry a 3x5 card with the word STOP on it
c.)Wear a rubber band around your wrist and snap it hard
2.)To keep your thoughts from returning to a negative belief, direct your attention elsewhere
Concentrate on a small object with all your focus
3.)When adversity strikes, schedule some time--later--for thinking things over
4.)Write the troublesome thoughts down the moment they occur

Disputation

1.)A deeper, more lasting remedy for disturbing beliefs is to dispute them. Go on the attack.
2.)It's easy to distance oneself from the accusations of others, but when we launch the attack ourselves, we assume it must be true. Wrong!

The 4 Disputation Techniques

1.)Evidence

A.)Show that the negative belief is factually incorrect. Ask, "What is the evidence for this belief?"
1.)Unlike positive thinking, which consists of trying to believe upbeat statements in the absence of evidence, learned optimism is about accuracy
2.)Repeating positive statements doesn't raise mood or achievement; it's how you cope with negative statements that has effect ("the power of non-negative thinking")
3.)Most people catastrophize--they select the potential cause with the direst implications--you can easily dispute this by pointing to the distortions in this

B.)Alternatives

1.)Most events have many causes. Pessimists latch on to the worst possible cause.
2.)To generate alternative explanations, focus on changeable, specific, non-personal causes

C.)Implications

**Sometimes, the negative belief is correct. If that's the case, you can still de-catastrophize.
1.) "Even if my belief is correct, what are it's real implications?"
2.) You can then repeat the search for evidence

D.)Usefulness

1.) Sometimes, the consequences of holding a belief matter more than the truth of that belief
a.) E.g. Your belief that life isn't fair is true, but doesn't do much for you
2.)If a belief isn't useful, try distraction, or look to the future. "Is the situation changeable? How can I go about changing it?"
 

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