Are You an Irrational Thinker

We all tend to worry about things from time to time.  However, do you worry about things every day and most of the day?  Do you obsess over little things like a squeaky floor or a dripping faucet thinking that the whole house is going to tumble down around you?  Then you may be a person with what is known as irrational thinking.

Irrational thinking is in one or more of seven categories.  These include:

Superstitions or letting popular beliefs such as death, bad luck et cetera prey on your fears.  Some superstitions include “never walk under a ladder”, “a black cat just crossed my path”, “never open an umbrella in the house”, and so many more non-sense things.  Yet to some people these things literally control their lives.

Arbitrary judgment or thinking the worst over small things.  A good example of this is when one automatically thinks they have cancer when they have a headache.

Catastrophizing is also known as the dwelling on the extremity of a consequence that is negative even if it is very unlikely.  An example for this is thinking the plane is going to crash even before it takes off.

Overgeneralization is another for of irrational thinking.  This is when a person is judging a situation negatively before they really even know what it is.  Using the words “never” and “always” are good signs of overgeneralization.  “I always get the most horrible assignments.”, or “I am never getting anything good to write about.”, are two examples of overgeneralization.

Personalization is also included in irrational thinking.  This is when a person applies every situation or event to their own lives just as if it is happening to them.  One good example of personalization is in a work situation when someone thinks “They are just meeting today to talk about me.”

Another form of irrational thinking is minimization or not taking things seriously enough.  Say you have a friend who drinks constantly but you think it really is not big deal.  That is an example of minimization.

Selective awareness also fits in to irrational thinking.  This is when someone focuses on just one part of a situation and misses the context of it all together.  This is sort of a “putting it off” type thing also.  Thinking that just as long as that (payment et cetera) gets there it does not matter if it is late is a good example of selective awareness.

Now that you know what to look for in irrational thinking, let us look at what to do to help control it.

First try controlling it yourself by maybe telling yourself that your co-workers are actually meeting to work on something.  Or look at your entire assignment as a whole before saying it is the worst (there may be something you really like once you get into it.)  Instead of thinking that it does not matter how late the bill payment is as long as it gets there, add up how much money you will save if you do not have to pay late fees.  If you have to pay a $10.00 late fee every month then you have just thrown away $120.00

Now if your irrational thinking starts “taking control of your life” and you cannot stop it on your own, talk to your doctor.  They may suggest you see a psychiatrist or even put you on medication for treatment or both.  Since irrational thinking can be a sign of a mental health problem, do not treat it as something that will pass.  It is actually a serious condition and can be a sign of OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder).  Do not take it lightly as it can affect your life in many ways.

Source:

www.wate.com

Personally have a friend who was like this before she got help