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Depression: Using positive thinking
time:2009-09-27 16:03from:healther123.com writer:healther123.com hit:times
- If you have thoughts of harming yourself or others, you need to see your doctor or therapist right away. Positive thinking can help with depression. But you may also need medicine and therapy.
- Negative thoughts can make depression worse or can raise your chance of having depression.
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy, or CBT, is a type of therapy that can help you replace negative thoughts with positive ones.
- Changing your thinking will take some time. You need to practice healthy thinking every day. After a while, positive thinking will come naturally to you.
- Watch. Notice your thoughts, sometimes called "self-talk." Some people don't pay much attention to what they tell themselves. If they happen to notice that they've told themselves they're a failure, they just accept that discouraging thought as fact.
- Check. Look at your thoughts, and ask if they are completely true. Ask yourself if these thoughts are untrue or exaggerated. Maybe you're ignoring something positive.
- Correct. Replace the negative thoughts with positive, helpful thoughts. This is the step where you can change the way you feel.
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is a type of therapy that can help change how you think about yourself.
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True
The answer is correct
Cognitive-behavioral therapy, or CBT, is a type of therapy that can help change how you think about yourself.
- False
The answer is incorrect
Cognitive-behavioral therapy, or CBT, is a type of therapy that can help change how you think about yourself.
- You need to see a counselor to do CBT.
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True
The answer is incorrect
You don't need to see a counselor to do CBT. There are techniques you can learn and practice on your own.
- False
The answer is correct
You don't need to see a counselor to do CBT. There are techniques you can learn and practice on your own.
Continue to Why is positive thinking important to help you cope with depression?
Return to Depression: Using positive thinkingWhy is positive thinking important to help you cope with depression?
Changing the way you think can help you replace negative thoughts with helpful ones. This can help you cope with depression and may help keep it from coming back.1
Maybe you weren't able to close a sale or get a big project done at work. Or perhaps a relationship has ended. It's normal to feel down. But you've had trouble sleeping. You can't enjoy many of your usual activities. And you're blaming yourself. "I'm a failure at everything," you tell yourself.
The more you think about yourself in a negative way, the harder it is to feel hopeful and positive. The negative thinking makes you feel bad. And that can make you feel more depressed, which leads to more bad thoughts about yourself. It's a cycle that's hard to break.
But with practice, you can retrain your brain. After all, you weren't born telling yourself negative things. You learned how to do it. So there’s no reason you can't teach your brain to unlearn it and replace negative thinking with more helpful thoughts.
Positive thinking also can help you manage stress. Too much stress can raise your blood pressure and make your heart work harder, which can increase your risk for a heart attack. Stress also can weaken your immune system, which can make you more open to infection and disease.
Although you can use CBT on your own, it’s important to talk to your doctor or a counselor if you feel that your mood is getting worse. You may need more help.
Test Your Knowledge
- Positive thinking can help you stop negative thoughts that make depression worse.
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True
The answer is correct
Positive thinking can help you stop negative thoughts that make depression worse. It also can help you replace those negative thoughts with more helpful, positive ones.
- False
The answer is incorrect
Positive thinking can help you stop negative thoughts that make depression worse. It also can help you replace those negative thoughts with more helpful, positive ones.
- Positive thinking can help your health in other ways.
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True
The answer is correct
Positive thinking can lower stress. And less stress can lower your blood pressure and make your immune system stronger.
- False
The answer is incorrect
Positive thinking can lower stress. And less stress can lower your blood pressure and make your immune system stronger.
Continue to How can you use positive thinking to cope with depression?
Return to Depression: Using positive thinkingHow can you use positive thinking to cope with depression?
Watch your thoughts
The first step is to notice your thoughts, or "self-talk." Self-talk is what you think and believe about yourself and your experiences. It's like a running commentary in your head. Your self-talk may be positive and helpful. Or it may be negative and not helpful.
Check your thoughts
The next step is to check your thoughts to see if they are true. Look at what you're saying to yourself. Does the evidence support your negative thought? Some of your self-talk may be true. Or it may be partly true but exaggerated. There are several kinds of irrational thoughts. Here are a few types to look for:
- Focusing on the negative: This is sometimes called filtering. You filter out the good and focus only on the bad. Example: "I'm sad that I don't have many friends. People must not like me." Reality: You have some friends. So that means you're likable and can make more friends if you want them.
- Should: People sometimes have set ideas about how they "should" act. If you hear yourself saying that you or other people "should," "ought to," or "have to" do something, then you might be setting yourself up to feel bad. Example: "I should get married before I'm 30. If I don't, it means I'm a loser." Reality: There's nothing wrong with having a timeline in mind. But you're not being fair to yourself if you make your self-worth depend on meeting a deadline.
- Overgeneralizing: This is taking one example and saying it's true for everything. Look for words such as "never" and "always." Example: "I got laid off. I'll never get another job." Reality: Many people lose their jobs because of downsizing and other things beyond their control. It doesn't mean that you won't be able to get another job.
- All-or-nothing thinking: This is also called black-or-white thinking. Example: "If I don't get a big raise at my next review, then it means I have no future with this company." Reality: There's nothing wrong with wanting a big raise. But if you don't get the raise, there may be reasons for it that have nothing to do with you.
Correct your thoughts
After you check the truth of the thought, the next step is to correct it. Replace the unhelpful thought with a more positive, helpful one.
Keeping a journal of your thoughts is one of the best ways to practice watching, checking, and correcting your thoughts. It makes you aware of your self-talk. Write down any negative or unhelpful thoughts you had during the day. If you think you might not remember at the end of your day, keep a notepad with you so you can write down any irrational thoughts as they happen. Then write down a helpful message to correct the unhelpful thought.
If you do this every day, positive or helpful thoughts will soon come naturally to you.
But there may be some truth in some of your negative thoughts. You may have some things you want to work on. If you didn't perform as well as you would like on something, write that down. You can work on a plan to correct or improve that area.
If you want, you also could write down what kind of irrational thought you had. Journal entries might look something like this:
Thought diary Watch for a negative thought
Check the type of thought
Correct with a positive thought
"I'm sad that I don't have many friends. People must not like me."
Focusing on negative
"I have some friends, so I know I can make friends."
"I should get married before I'm 30. If I don't, it means I'm a loser."
Should
"There's no guarantee that I'll meet the right person by the time I'm 30. If I don't get married by then, I still have time to find a good relationship."
"I got laid off. I'll never get another job."
Overgeneralizing
"Our company ran into financial trouble, so I got laid off. It may take some time to get another job, but I know I will."
"If I don't get a big raise at my next review, then it means I have no future with this company."
All or nothing
"I would love to get a big raise. But it might not be in the company's budget this year."
Test Your Knowledge
- Which of these thoughts is an example of positive thinking?
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I've had a couple of bad relationships. I know I'll never have a good relationship.
The answer is incorrect
This is an example of an irrational thought called overgeneralizing. You may have had some relationships that didn't last. But that doesn't mean that you will never meet someone and have a loving relationship.
- I feel bad that I didn't get as big a raise as I wanted. But there may have been reasons that had nothing to do with me. I'll talk to my supervisor to see if there is anything I can do to get a bigger raise next time.
The answer is correct
This is a positive thought. You admit that you feel bad about something, but you're not blaming yourself. You're taking action to see if there is anything you can do to improve your chances next time.
- How can a daily journal help you have more positive thoughts?
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It makes you aware of your self-talk and can help you come up with helpful thoughts to correct an irrational thought.
The answer is correct
Both answers are correct. A daily journal can help you be aware of your self-talk and have more positive thoughts. As soon as you write down an unhelpful thought, you can write a positive thought to correct it.
- Writing in the journal every day will help positive thinking come naturally to you.
The answer is correct
Both answers are correct. Writing in the journal every day will help positive thinking come naturally to you. It takes some practice. It took a long time for negative thinking to become automatic. So it may take some time to get used to having positive thoughts.
Continue to Where to go from here
Return to Depression: Using positive thinkingWhere to go from here
Now that you have read this information, you are ready to practice positive thinking to help cope with depression.
Return to Depression: Using positive thinking
Related Information
References
Citations
Paykel ES (2007). Cognitive therapy in relapse prevention in depression. International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology, 10: 131–136.
Other Works Consulted
Burns DD (1999). Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy. New York: Avon.
Ellis A (2001). Overcoming Destructive Beliefs, Feelings, and Behaviors. Amherst, NY: Prometheus.
McKay M, et al. (2007). Thoughts and Feelings: Taking Control of Your Moods and Your Life. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger.
Credits
Author Marianne Flagg Editor Katy E. Magee, MA Associate Editor Michele Cronen Primary Medical Reviewer Catherine D. Serio, PhD - Behavioral Health Specialist Medical Reviewer Lisa S. Weinstock, MD - Psychiatry Last Updated August 27, 2008 - Depression: Using positive thinking
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- Writing in the journal every day will help positive thinking come naturally to you.
- I feel bad that I didn't get as big a raise as I wanted. But there may have been reasons that had nothing to do with me. I'll talk to my supervisor to see if there is anything I can do to get a bigger raise next time.
- False
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- False
- False
Introduction
Depression is an illness that makes a person feel sad and hopeless much of the time. It's different than feeling a little sad or down. Depression can be treated with counseling or medicine, or both.
Positive thinking also can help prevent or control depression.
Key points
What is positive thinking?
Why is positive thinking important to help you cope with depression?
How can you use positive thinking to cope with depression?
Where to go from here
If you would like more information, see the topic:
Return to topic:
What is positive thinking?
Positive thinking, or healthy thinking, is a way to help you stay well by changing how you think. It’s based on research that shows that you can change how you think. And how you think affects how you feel.
Cognitive-behavioral therapy, also called CBT, is a type of therapy that is often used to help people think in a healthy way. CBT can help you learn to replace negative thoughts with positive ones. These negative thoughts are sometimes called irrational or automatic thoughts.
Working on your own or with a counselor, you can practice these three steps:
The goal is to have positive thoughts come naturally. It may take some time to change the way you think. So you will need to practice positive thinking every day.