In the Introductory video to Thinking Better (above), you learned that thoughts can have an impact on your experience of pain. Some thoughts are self-defeating and some are helpful. Self-defeating thoughts trigger negative consequences, such as negative emotions, additional negative thoughts, and increased pain. Helpful thoughts tend to neutralize negative negative emotions and yield productive thoughts, and make it easier to manage chronic pain.
This Learning Activity will teach you how to recognize self-defeating thoughts. Let's start by reviewing features of Self-Defeating Thoughts,
Self-Defeating Thoughts can be:
ALARMING: Alarming thoughts may make you feel afraid, worried, alone, helpless, hopeless, angry, depressed, or panicked. Alarming thoughts often contain emotional words and ideas involving danger, hopelessness, isolation, abandonment, or failure.
UNREALISTIC: Unrealistic thoughts some unlikely events or consequences of pain. Such thoughts often contain extreme words or ideas. Look for words like never, always, impossible, can't, won't, or forever.
PASSIVE: Passive thoughts cast you as a victim and don't suggest solutions to your problems. Some passive thoughts give control to someone else such as a doctor or spouse.