Understanding emotions

“an emotion is a cognitive feeling that determines how we feel, think or act in response to a stimulus.”

Above is a false definition, based upon what most people would define emotion as. Its often tough to separate how we feel with how our emotions are effecting us. Tricked you huh?

“instinctive or intuitive feeling as distinguished from reasoning or knowledge.”

As you can see the true definition of emotion is very different in one important way, it makes a distinction that emotions are separated from reasoning and knowledge. Learning to interpret what our emotions mean is critical to developing our capacities for reasoning and knowledge.  Below are 10 cognitive distortions and some examples that could be dragging you down without you realizing it.

Cognitive distortions are irrational thoughts that can influence your emotions. Everyone experiences cognitive distortions to some degree, but in their more extreme forms they can be harmful.

 

Magnification and Minimization: Exaggerating or minimizing the importance of events. One might believe their own achievements are unimportant, or that their mistakes are excessively important.

 

For example, when something bad happens, you see this as "proof" of your own failures. But when good things happen, you minimize their importance. For example, a person addicted to pain medication might magnify the importance of eliminating all pain and exaggerate how unbearable their pain is.

 

Catastrophizing: Seeing only the worst possible outcomes of a situation.

 

For example, Nathan focuses on all of the negative or hurtful things that his partner has said or done in their relationship, but he filters all the kind and thoughtful things his partner does. This thinking contributes to feelings of negativity about his partner and their relationship.

 

Overgeneralization: Making broad interpretations from a single or few events. “I felt awkward during my job interview. I am always so awkward.”

 

For example, imagine that you made a suggestion about a work project that wasn't adopted in the final work. You might overgeneralize this and assume that no one at work ever listens to you or takes you seriously.

 

Magical Thinking: The belief that acts will influence unrelated situations. “I am a good person—bad things shouldn’t happen to me.”

Personalization: The belief that one is responsible for events outside of their own control. “My mom is always upset. She would be fine if I did more to help her.” Jumping to Conclusions: Interpreting the meaning of a situation with little or no evidence.

Mind Reading: Interpreting the thoughts and beliefs of others without adequate evidence. “She would not go on a date with me. She probably thinks I’m ugly.”

Fortune Telling: The expectation that a situation will turn out badly without adequate evidence.

Emotional Reasoning: The assumption that emotions reflect the way things really are. “I feel like a bad friend, therefore I must be a bad friend.”

Disqualifying the Positive: Recognizing only the negative aspects of a situation while ignoring the positive. One might receive many compliments on an evaluation, but focus on the single piece of negative feedback.

“Should” Statements: The belief that things should be a certain way. “I should always be friendly.”

 

An example: Cheryl thinks she should be able to play a song on her violin without making any mistakes. When she does make mistakes, she feels angry and upset with herself. As a result, she starts to avoid practicing her violin.

 

All-or-Nothing Thinking: Thinking in absolutes such as “always”, “never”, or “every”. “I never do a good enough job on anything.”

 

An example of all-or-nothing thinking is dwelling on mistakes and assuming you will never be able to do well, instead of acknowledging the error and trying to move past it.

 

Sometimes a thought is just a thought, sometimes an emotion is just an emotion, and sometimes an urge is just an urge. Below I will attach a “Daily Mood log” that if used correctly and honestly will help you with your depression or anxiety. In D&C 93 we read  “And ^atruth is ^bknowledge of things as they are, and as they were, and as they are to come; And whatsoever is ^amore or less than this is the spirit of that wicked one who was a ^bliar from the beginning.” This is not just an exercise in positive thinking, this is an exercise to find truth. And I’ve seen it work for me and others close to me in my life.