Cognitive Restructuring is the way that therapists help individuals learn to identify the types of faulty thinking styles they've been using, and once learned it's just called Cognitive Reframing, which is something you can do on your own in your everyday life. It was developed by Aaron Beck, who was the same man that developed Cognitive therapy, and it's as easy as ABCDE...
Here's how it works:
A= Activating Event (i.e., an event or events is happening in your world)
B= Belief (i.e., you use faulting beliefs to filtering those events through your mind)
C= Consequences (i.e., negative feelings result from the way you think and filter the events)
D= Disputations (i.e., learning to dispute the negative thinking styles with facts and evidence)
E= Emotions (i.e., the new and more comfortable emotions you experience as a result)
Example:
A= Your boss gives you an evaluation and says that your could work a little bit faster
B= You filter that comment through a faulty belief that your boss never appreciates your work
C= As a result you start to feel depressed and angry and think about finding a new job
D= Then you challenge your belief by recalling your boss compliments you quite often
E= The result is a calmer feeling and a realistic awareness that one critique does not end all
Here is a link to read more about some of the most frequently used faulty thinking styles.
And yes, we all use some of them sometimes, and some of us use all of them sometimes! Try to identify which of the faulty thinking styles you use most often and practice disputing them with more rational thinking. What you will find in the end is that the way you feel can change and your stress and anxiety can find relief.
Thanks to Nikky for the great photo
