7 Strategies to Challenge Negative Thoughts
If you’ve ever struggled with anxiety or depression, you’re probably verrryyyyy familiar with negative thoughts.
It can be SO difficult to avoid getting stuck in a cycle of negative thinking, so let’s talk about 7 ways to challenge negative thoughts when they arise!
1. Recognize the thought pattern (and how you got there).
Most of the time, thoughts are automatic. Something happens, your brain interprets it in some way (usually based on your past experiences or beliefs), you experience an emotional response based on that story and, as a result, behave in some way.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of distorted thinking patterns that can manipulate how your brain interprets an event. Here are a few to look out for:
Black-and-white thinking (blanket all-or-nothing statements)
Catastrophizing (assuming the worst case scenario)
Personalizing (believing something out of your control is your fault)
Mind reading or jumping to conclusions (assuming what someone else is thinking or what will happen)
Minimizing or disqualifying the positive (only seeing the negatives and disregarding the positives)
The first step in challenging negative thoughts is to recognize the pattern they follow and understand how you arrived at them. Pay attention to your thought processes and identify recurring themes or triggers. By becoming aware of these patterns, you can catch negative thoughts as they arise and intervene before they spiral out of control.
2. Explore the evidence.
If you’ve ever heard of cognitive behavioral therapy, this concept might be familiar to you. In CBT, clients are asked to examine what factual evidence exists about their negative thought. Although most negative thoughts are based on assumptions or distorted interpretations of events, it’s common for folks to simply assume their thought is true. But remember, your limbic brain is not necessarily a reliable narrator. Challenging the validity of your negative thoughts can help you gain a more realistic, and ultimately more helpful, perspective.
3. Identify a more helpful reframe.
Most negative thoughts aren’t just negative, but are also unhelpful. Thoughts like, “I’m a piece of shit” or “I never do anything right” don’t inspire growth or motivation to keep trying. And for some folks, a simple positive spin to an objectively bad situation doesn’t always help either. So, what to do? Look for a more helpful reframe that is encouraging, compassionate, and inspires movement toward positive change.
Here’s an example. Let’s take the negative, unhelpful thought of “I’m a failure who can’t do anything right.” Here are a few alternative reframes that may be more helpful:
“I’m embarrassed right now, but I’m going to keep working at this.”
“I can learn from this mistake and improve.”
“It sucks that this happened, but I know other people mess up too sometimes. It isn’t just me.”
“This is a stressful mistake, but I’ve also had some good successes. This isn’t the only thing that defines me.”
The key is to avoid kicking yourself while you’re down, because that’s unhelpful. What’s a more functional way to think about it? That’s the goal.
4. Externalize your inner critic.
We all have an inner critic (and somehow, theirs is always the loudest voice 🙄). Part of the problem here is that we tend to believe whatever this inner critic tells us, because it feels like an extension of ourselves.
Externalizing your inner critic, however, allows you to view your critical voice as another being rather than part of you — which often makes it easier to not listen to whatever harsh thing it says. This can be done in a few ways:
Give your inner critic a name. Then, when negative thoughts arise, remind yourself that it’s just Barbara speaking, and who tf is Barbara anyway? We don’t have to listen to her.
Imagine your critical voice as one part of yourself and give it a name. When negative thoughts come up, remind yourself that that’s just the “anxious part” of your brain, not you.
Cool, right?
5. Practice cognitive defusion.
Cognitive defusion involves creating distance between yourself and your thoughts, allowing you to observe them as an outsider without becoming entangled or defined by them. For example, “I’m never going to be good enough” feels permanent and perhaps objectively true. “I’m noticing that I feel like I’m never going to be good enough” offers a more neutral perspective. This strategy acknowledges that your thoughts and feelings are temporary — which means they won’t last forever, and you can overcome them. Another idea is to visualize the negative thoughts as passing clouds or leaves floating down a stream. Detaching yourself (or your identity) from your thoughts often reduces their impact on your emotions.
6. Stop time-traveling.
Negative thoughts often involve dwelling on the past or worrying about a potential future — both of which you have no control over in the present moment. Time-traveling takes you out of the present moment, where you do have some control, and keeps you stuck in an unhelpful cycle because there’s no immediate resolution. Instead, practice staying present and evaluating how you can make choices now that align with the outcome you would like to see.
7. Talk it out with a supportive person.
Whether you prefer to talk to family, friends, and/or a therapist, it can be incredibly helpful to reach out for support when navigating negative thoughts. The negative thoughts are often loud and it can be cathartic to express them aloud and receive empathy and reassurance in response. Plus, talking to someone else can provide valuable perspective and open your eyes to another way of thinking.
Challenging negative thoughts can be a transformative process, but like any new skill, it requires practice. The neuroplasticity in your brain is similar to the process of building muscle at the gym — the more you do it, the greater your results will be!
For more anxiety support, don’t forget to download the FREE self-care planner, specifically designed to help manage anxiety!
