Have you ever paused to consider whether your perception and interpretation of the world around you are accurate? Or found yourself puzzled by the actions or words of others in your personal or professional life, wondering what could be going through their minds?

These types of questions can sometimes cause difficult feelings like fear, worry, anger, guilt, or sadness – and these feelings can spill over to affect many areas of our lives. Therefore, it can be helpful to look at how our thoughts actually work and understand how to use this valuable information to our benefit.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is one of the approaches that members of our care team may use when working with members to help them process thoughts and feelings and understand their behaviors. Here, we share more about how evidence-based support rooted in CBT can support your employees. 

We recently launched a new CBT-based Guided Program for mood and anxiety in the Headspace app. Co-led by a Headspace mindfulness meditation teacher and a Headspace psychiatrist, the program offers an accessible way to build emotional awareness and resilience.  

How do thoughts work? The cognitive behavioral model

In the 1960’s, psychiatrist and CBT pioneer Dr. Aaron Beck conducted clinical studies of individuals experiencing depression and other psychological disorders. In these studies, he discovered recurring themes which laid the foundation for his Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Model. 

In psychology, the word cognitive refers to thoughts, and therapy relates to the process of providing some form of treatment. So, the cognitive behavioral model presents a way to work through many psychological challenges, by illustrating how our reactions to situations are often more connected to our perceptions of those situations than to the situations themselves.

The idea is that:

1. An event happens or someone does something—For example, you get in an argument with a coworker, forget to RSVP for a party, or do not receive a raise.
2. We think a certain thought—“they’re wrong and being rude”, “I should have been a better friend” or “They think I'm stupid”. 
3. We feel a certain way based on that thought—angry, guilty, or depressed.
4. We respond or do something based on that feeling—responding with angry words or actions, not hanging out with friends, or giving up. 

In short, the process goes event → thought → feeling → behavior. That is the basic outline for how our thoughts can work and how they can impact our whole life. 

Why do we think like this?

The cognitive behavioral model is based on three main types of thoughts: (1) our underlying core beliefs, (2) our automatic thoughts, and (3) cognitive distortions.  

1. Underlying core beliefs

The most central ideas that we have about ourselves, other people, and the world around us are called our core beliefs. These often strongly held beliefs are developed over time and are shaped by the experiences and circumstances that we go through beginning in childhood. Core beliefs can affect our thoughts, feelings and behaviors.‍

2. Automatic thoughts 

Automatic thoughts are just as the term describes— these are the words, images, and other types of mental activity that happen automatically, in response to an event or trigger. Our automatic thoughts are often rooted in our own core beliefs. They happen to us all, and they can be both positive and negative.

3. Cognitive distortions

Where a lot of people get stuck when it comes to their automatic thoughts is around a type of inaccurate or unhelpful thought called a "cognitive distortion''. A cognitive distortion is a mental roadblock where certain aspects of our experiences are given more (often negative) focus than others. Again, this happens automatically, like mental magic...but it can sabotage our lives. 

In the examples above, there were several cognitive distortions present. 

• All-or-nothing thinking—After getting in a disagreement with a coworker: “They’re being rude and don’t understand what this project is about. They need to be fired”. 
• Shoulding—After forgetting to RSVP for a party: “I should have been a better friend.”
• Mind-reading—After not receiving a raise: “They think I’m stupid!”

Why is this information helpful? Cognitive reframing

When examining our automatic thoughts and cognitive distortions, it is important to note that all of our thoughts are valid. Even some very negative thoughts are valid because they are based on real, undeniable, external emotional triggers. When taking a CBT approach, it's not only about replacing negative thoughts with more positive ones – it’s also about exploring helpful ways to cope and being kind to yourself when the thoughts are actually true. 

Research shows that considering new perspectives can counteract the less helpful, negative thoughts. Therefore, cognitive reframing (or thought reframing) is a science-based approach to catching, challenging, and changing the unhelpful thoughts, and having the cognitive flexibility to consider additional thoughts that can also be true. Headspace coaches and therapists can walk members through this process during sessions, helping them to understand cognitive reframing and build the skills to use these approaches themselves.

In fact, The Headspace CBT guided program is a great place to start working through this process. In the course, you can learn about how to  (1) explore your emotions when an event happens, (2) identify the thoughts and behaviors associated with the emotion, (3) reflect on how helpful those thoughts and behaviors were, and (4) explore new perspectives and approaches when needed.

In part two of this three-part blog series, we will take a closer look at how CBT is used in coaching in particular. 

Interested in learning more about how Headspace uses CBT and other science-backed techniques to support employee mental health? Contact us here.

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