Program stream: This module applies to the anxiety and depression programs.
The Automatic Thoughts module reviews the connection between thoughts and feelings and how that connection can affect anxiety and depression. The module helps the client know the difference between thoughts and feelings and how to identify them. It covers the concept of automatic thoughts and how they can affect our mood and depression.
A short quiz follows the introduction to the module that tests the client's retention of the information presented.
The Thought Journals section presents the idea of recording automatic thoughts to help the client identify their automatic thoughts and record them in the journal for analysis.
The exercise asks the client to track the following three criteria:
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The situation the client was in when the thought occurred.
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The feeling the client had during the situation and how intense it was on a scale of 1 - 10.
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The automatic thoughts that occurred during the situation.
Two examples are provided to help the client understand the exercise.
This section provides tips for the client to help them identify automatic thoughts as they happen. The client is encouraged to:
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Be specific - About both the situation (when and where it occurred, what occurred, who was with them) and the thoughts that accompanied the situation.
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Be on the lookout - For depressing thoughts that are focused on the negative or stuck in the past. For anxious thoughts, "what if" statements where we are convinced something bad will happen.
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Ask questions - To understand the root of what makes them feel depressed or anxious, such as "What was I thinking right before I started this way?", "Am I dwelling on the past or assuming the worst?", "What is so bad about this situation?", "What is the worst thing that could happen in this situation", and "What would that say about me?"
The Thinking Traps section helps the client understand how to identify problematic thinking styles that can affect how we think in different situations. The section then identifies the 10 common thinking traps the client should watch out for:
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All or nothing thinking - Thinking in extremes.
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Mind reading - Assuming you know what others are thinking.
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Fortune telling - Assuming you know what will happen in the future.
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Emotional reasoning - Being caught in your feelings and assuming what you are thinking must be true because of how you feel.
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Labelling - Assigning a label to yourself or others.
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Ignoring the good - Not paying attention to good things that have happened or that you've done, or believing these things had nothing to do with what you did, or was by chance and not due to your hard work.
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Worst case scenario - Jumping to the worst possible outcome.
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Should or must thinking - Thinking about how you "should" be, or setting yourself to unrealistic expectations.
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It's all my fault - Blaming yourself or taking responsibility for something that isn't your fault, or believing that someone else's mood is caused by you.
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Focusing on the bad - Focusing on negative or bad things that have happened or believing there is nothing you can do to make good things happen in your life.
Examples of the thinking traps are shown that map to the personas presented earlier in the program to help the client understand how to identify and analyse their automatic thoughts. A short quiz follows to help test the client's retention of the information provided.
The exercise for this module encourages the client to complete one Thought Journal entry in the Thought Journal tool. The task helps them to understand the importance of tracking thoughts and what to track as they go along in their week. The exercise asks the client to provide an importance rating as to why they should start tracking their thoughts and to think of potential barriers they might face to recording their thoughts.
They are then asked to provide a confidence rating of how confident they think they are that they can make this change and think about what supports they could use to get a higher confidence rating.