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Recognising and Overcoming Cognitive Distortions (biased ways of thinking)

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Recognising and overcoming cognitive distortions (biased ways of thinking)

I picked up on  (thanks again if you're reading this :-)  ) recommendation about this  https://youtu.be/Ek6V4F6nWM8 ?  I find it a great start for beneficial for self-help.  Right place, right time as they say.

"Cognitive distortions are biased ways of thinking that can cause individuals to perceive situations, themselves, and others in a negative or inaccurate light. They are often automatic and habitual, making them difficult to recognize without conscious effort. " says google.

This is a core part of CBT which I acknowledge is considered less successful for autistic people than for neurotypicals.  hehe perhaps that's because of the cognitive distortions that autistic people experience which CBT is aimed at helping!

Change is hard for autistic people and maybe in part it is related to one's thinking...  So maybe changing one's thinking is especially hard for autistics?  

Anyway the link at the top I personally found to be a good base for some self-help on this.

So I would like to promote a discussion about it please.

Maybe some of you reading this are in the right place and the right time for it too?

Maybe some of you have tried it and it didn't work for you?

Maybe some have tips for making it work or pitfalls to avoid?

Maybe just to say it works and is worth the hard work?

Best Wishes - Live long and Prosper!

  • in reply to DormouseAtRest_25

    Thank you for the link  

    I am prone to this, especially when a problem arises:

    Jumping to conclusions

    There tends to be two types of thinking we do when we jump to conclusions. Fortune telling is when we think that we can tell what is going to happen. Mind reading is when we think we know what other people are thinking. No matter how real it feels, we cannot know what others are thinking (unless they tell us) or what is going to happen!

  • Thanks for posting this   

    I am told I make cognitive distortions all the time. Ooops, not true. I have been told a few times that I sometimes make cognitive distortions, but I am working hard to recognise these, often replacing distortion with fact.

    I find CBT techniques more useful for anxiety and self esteem than for depression. Depression has been hanging over me for most of my life, yet I have had much input from psychiatrists, psychologists & CBT therapists, especially in my younger days. I recently returned to some of my old CBT worksheets in self esteem, and this time round they have been more helpful, possibly because I understand myself better following autism diagnosis. The health service in N. Ireland is in dire straights, so I have no hope of a further referral within a reasonable timeframe. 

    I think it is important to recognise and acknowledge the issues that are not black and white and pick one thing at a time to work on for the next week(s). If people have a family member or friend who could watch or read up on the aspect you are working on, they could be tasked with helping you recognise the distortion. It requires work and sustained effort, but in my experience is worth it. 

  • Other resources around cognitive distortions and unhelpful thinking styles (the descriptions of common cognitive distortions):

    https://www.autistica.org.uk/what-is-autism/anxiety-and-autism-hub/unhelpful-thinking-styles

    Below the list of expandable unhelpful thinking styles, the article emphasises the importance of slowing down our thinking and ask ourselves questions about exactly what we know about a given situation and whether there might be any other explanations beyond that which had been our initial thought.

  • in reply to Stuart333

    I believe that you and I share similar ways of thinking  The definite conclusion bit is tricky as it implies one is able to absolutely predict the future.  Ok so we know we're all on a road to nowhere and there are taxes...  Personally I reckon that the best I can do is try to influence the future for the best outcome for all concerned.  Because of the complexity of "modern life" there are just so many variables (the vast majority of which are realistically outside of one's control) maybe it gets especially tricky for the like of you and me.  Oh for a simple life...  :-)

  • in reply to Stuart333

    Thanks for your reply  (at the risk of demonstrating overthinking) "In physics, power is defined as the rate at which work is done or energy is transferred."  Sharing knowledge in a rapid way is especially powerful.  Cheers again :-)

  • I'm pleased you found it useful. Knowledge is power.

    Stopping the black & white thinking is hard. I always have to reason things to a conclusion so I have a definite outcome, then I can decide and I know what to expect. But this assumes I have enough data and i don't make a mistake. It is hard to just do things without overthinking them.

    You can be more prone to these problems when overloaded or stressed. And when in burnout or breakdown the general disregulation makes thinking clearly hard, and worse you can't see it from the inside till later and think you are mostly ok.