Tag: emotons

Thoughts About Thoughts

March 13, 2023

 

 

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) suggest that our thoughts, emotions, and behaviors are interconnected, and that what we think and do impacts the way we feel.  It follows that monitoring and changing thoughts where needed can change one’s life.

 

It’s reported that the average person has more than 6,000 thoughts per day. Becoming aware of these thoughts and thought patterns is imperative to changing behaviors and emotions. We will only feel as good as our thoughts allow us to feel.

 

Think of your mind as a thought machine that’s at work during all your waking hours and sometimes even when you’re in a deep sleep.

 

Where do thoughts originate?

 ·       Experiences

·    &n ...

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As a father, and former child myself, I’ve been exposed to many animated movies. Some stand out for their entertainment value, while others stand out for their accurate, and oftentimes humorous portrayal of reality. Of the latter, one such movie stands out above the others as a mental health counselor: Inside Out (Disney/Pixar, 2015). While many may be familiar with the film, I have attached a YouTube video of the opening scene; whether or not you’ve seen the movie, I’d encourage you to watch the clip now before reading on, as we will be doing a brief analysis of the clip. 

Meet Riley's Emotions

Okay, now that we are all on the same page, let’s get into it. What should be clear at this point is that the various characters—Joy, Sadness, Fear, Disgust, and Anger—are anthropomorphic representations of their namesake emotions, each a part of Riley’s internal syste ...

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The two biggest factors that influence your present day relationship patterns are: 

1. How you experienced conflict in your family of origin.
2. How/if you received comfort in your family of origin.

Let me illustrate with two versions of the same story, with different endings: 

Version 1: 

Imagine that you’re 5 years old, find a mental picture of yourself at that age. What did your hair look like, what was a favorite outfit that you may have been wearing? Once you have that image, imagine yourself at that age coming back from a family vacation in another state. Your family has already driven 3 hours away from the vacation spot toward home and are getting back in the vehicle after a rest stop. Your parents are trying to help you into the family car when you realize that you left your favorite teddy bear back at your vacation spot. Your comfo ...

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Were you ever told or tell yourself any of the the below statements:

 

“You’ll get over it.”

“Never give up.”

“Stop being so negative.”

“Just be happy.”

“Everything happens for a reason.”

“You’ll be fine.”

“Look on the bright side.”

 

Have you ever felt misunderstood by your friends and family when you share what you are struggling with? Have you ever felt that what you are going through shouldn’t be so hard and that you need to just get over it and move on? Do you ever find yourself saying positive things that don’t really seem to help the situation?

 

If you answered yes to any of the above questions you are not alone. As humans we often are hardwired to believe that it is not “okay” to feel anything bad or that bad or sad emotions are not okay. Whether we are the ones experiencing the emotion o ...

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