Since the late 1960's mental health experts have been successfully using cognitive behavioral therapy to provide much-needed help for depression.
This approach to treating major depressive disorders is based on the premise that faulty thinking such as negative "self-talk", exaggeration of negative circumstances, focusing on failures and obstacles, disjointed beliefs and thoughts, etc.
, can lead to psychological problems.
But just where does this faulty thinking come from? Well, cognitive therapists believe the depressed person may have developed this maladaptive way of thinking as a result of negative life experiences such as those which occur when growing up in a dysfunctional family.
These events are often made worse by deficient social learning (e.
g.
, lack of coping skills).
Some areas of faulty thinking which patients commonly report to therapists when they're seeking help for depression include: Rigid Self-Judgement This usually takes the form of negative self-judgements about managing day-to-day life tasks, doing, saying or acting the way the think they should.
Negative Evaluation of Life Experiences Instead of acknowledging the positive aspects of an experience, the depressed person will focus-in and exaggerate the smallest negative aspects.
For example, after receiving an excellent performance evaluation and raise at work, the person might obsess over a single "needs improvement" comment.
Harsh Self-Talk Self-talk takes the form of filtering and describing to ourselves the way we deal with problems and make decisions.
Now, this is something we all do.
However, when self-talk is habitually negative, it can interfere with problem-solving, decision-making processes.
After consistently telling one's self, " I'm going to mess this up, as usual," or, " I'm probably going to lose my job when they figure out what a screw-up I am," this type of self-talk can become immobilizing and may require help for depression.
Automatic Thoughts Automatic thoughts are repetitive, self-statements which we tell ourselves in response to particular situations.
The reason they are termed "automatic" is because these thoughts do not arise after thoughtful analysis of a situation.
Rather they are pre-established reactions to certain circumstances.
When these thoughts are negative they can create an expectation of something unfavorable about to happen.
For example, when meeting new people, some individuals automatically assume the other person will dislike them or think they are stupid or unattractive.
Irrational Beliefs Mental health experts suggest these believes are irrational because they are usually based on a false premise which isn't logical.
Some examples of these irrational ideas may include: Unless everyone likes me, I cannot be happy.
My life would be wonderful if only I could do what is expected of me.
Good people never experience bad things.
Bad people never experience good things.
Bad people always get punished in the end.
I will be successful if I'm smart enough and work hard enough.
Pessimistic Thinking While depression, itself, isn't caused by pessimistic thinking, it can make you vulnerable to becoming depressed.
If you have a habit of thinking things won't turn out the way you hope they will, or you'll never get what you want out of life, you can begin a slow, downward slide into a depressed state.
The main problem with pessimistic thinking is that it can lead to hopelessness.
If you see your life as consistently troublesome and full of problems which you don't believe you can do anything to fix, it can make you feel helpless.
If you believe you're helpless to do anything to improve your situation, and that this is the way your life will always be, it won't be long before you will begin to feel hopeless.
As such, cognitive therapy is designed to give the patient an understanding of how this faulty thinking can affect their emotional well-being.
As the saying goes, "you can't change what you don't acknowledge.
" Additionally, the patient is helped to develop new perspectives for how they see themselves and their current life experiences.
It is through this process that the individual gains coping skills which prevent troubling issues from ruling their lives.
If you recognize yourself in some of these examples of faulty thinking and you believe you may be depressed, talk to someone who can offer help for depression.
Start with your primary physician to get reliable guidance for what to do next.
This approach to treating major depressive disorders is based on the premise that faulty thinking such as negative "self-talk", exaggeration of negative circumstances, focusing on failures and obstacles, disjointed beliefs and thoughts, etc.
, can lead to psychological problems.
But just where does this faulty thinking come from? Well, cognitive therapists believe the depressed person may have developed this maladaptive way of thinking as a result of negative life experiences such as those which occur when growing up in a dysfunctional family.
These events are often made worse by deficient social learning (e.
g.
, lack of coping skills).
Some areas of faulty thinking which patients commonly report to therapists when they're seeking help for depression include: Rigid Self-Judgement This usually takes the form of negative self-judgements about managing day-to-day life tasks, doing, saying or acting the way the think they should.
Negative Evaluation of Life Experiences Instead of acknowledging the positive aspects of an experience, the depressed person will focus-in and exaggerate the smallest negative aspects.
For example, after receiving an excellent performance evaluation and raise at work, the person might obsess over a single "needs improvement" comment.
Harsh Self-Talk Self-talk takes the form of filtering and describing to ourselves the way we deal with problems and make decisions.
Now, this is something we all do.
However, when self-talk is habitually negative, it can interfere with problem-solving, decision-making processes.
After consistently telling one's self, " I'm going to mess this up, as usual," or, " I'm probably going to lose my job when they figure out what a screw-up I am," this type of self-talk can become immobilizing and may require help for depression.
Automatic Thoughts Automatic thoughts are repetitive, self-statements which we tell ourselves in response to particular situations.
The reason they are termed "automatic" is because these thoughts do not arise after thoughtful analysis of a situation.
Rather they are pre-established reactions to certain circumstances.
When these thoughts are negative they can create an expectation of something unfavorable about to happen.
For example, when meeting new people, some individuals automatically assume the other person will dislike them or think they are stupid or unattractive.
Irrational Beliefs Mental health experts suggest these believes are irrational because they are usually based on a false premise which isn't logical.
Some examples of these irrational ideas may include: Unless everyone likes me, I cannot be happy.
My life would be wonderful if only I could do what is expected of me.
Good people never experience bad things.
Bad people never experience good things.
Bad people always get punished in the end.
I will be successful if I'm smart enough and work hard enough.
Pessimistic Thinking While depression, itself, isn't caused by pessimistic thinking, it can make you vulnerable to becoming depressed.
If you have a habit of thinking things won't turn out the way you hope they will, or you'll never get what you want out of life, you can begin a slow, downward slide into a depressed state.
The main problem with pessimistic thinking is that it can lead to hopelessness.
If you see your life as consistently troublesome and full of problems which you don't believe you can do anything to fix, it can make you feel helpless.
If you believe you're helpless to do anything to improve your situation, and that this is the way your life will always be, it won't be long before you will begin to feel hopeless.
As such, cognitive therapy is designed to give the patient an understanding of how this faulty thinking can affect their emotional well-being.
As the saying goes, "you can't change what you don't acknowledge.
" Additionally, the patient is helped to develop new perspectives for how they see themselves and their current life experiences.
It is through this process that the individual gains coping skills which prevent troubling issues from ruling their lives.
If you recognize yourself in some of these examples of faulty thinking and you believe you may be depressed, talk to someone who can offer help for depression.
Start with your primary physician to get reliable guidance for what to do next.