When people struggle with their mental health, they can easily fall into thinking traps, also known as cognitive distortions. These patterns feel true in the moment, which is exactly why they’re so convincing. However, when you learn to notice them, label them, and respond to them differently, you can get unstuck instead of staying trapped in the thought.
1. All-or-Nothing Thinking
This is when you see things in extremes. Something is either all good or all bad. Someone is either the best or the worst. There are no shades of gray—it’s black or white. The problem is that when you think this way, your mood can shift very fast. One small moment changes and suddenly everything feels bad.
A simple way to work on this is to get your brain to think in shades of gray. Write down the evidence for and against a person or situation, and then summarize it. This alone helps you see things more objectively.
2. Overgeneralizing
This is when one small event turns into a big conclusion. Like you struggle with one math problem and your brain goes, “I’m bad at math,” instead of just saying, “I’m struggling with this specific problem.” Your brain takes a small piece of information and turns it into a global belief.
A quick way to interrupt this is simply by calling it out: “Oh, my brain is overgeneralizing right now!” That often stops it from ruminating further.
3. Catastrophizing
This is assuming the worst is going to happen. You get a short email from your boss and your brain goes: “Did I do something wrong? I’m gonna get fired. And if I get fired, I won’t be able to pay my bills. And if I can’t pay my bills, I’m gonna end up homeless.”
The brain is trying to protect you, but it’s overdoing it. So what you can do is acknowledge it by saying, “Thank you, mind. I know you’re trying to help, but I don’t need you right now.”
4. Mind Reading
This is when you assume you know what other people are thinking. Maybe there’s a look or a facial expression, and your brain fills in the rest. Most of the time, this is just projection—it’s not what they think about you, it’s what you think about yourself.
A useful reminder is this: you don’t actually know what someone thinks unless they tell you. If your brain insists otherwise, check whose voice that really is.
5. Disqualifying the Positive
Something good happens. You do something well, and your brain immediately minimizes it or explains it away. For this, when you do something well, ask yourself: “The fact that I did this, what does this say about me?”
How to Get Unstuck
The key to escaping these thinking patterns is awareness. When you can recognize the trap in the moment, you can step out of it. You don’t have to believe every thought your brain produces—you just have to learn to notice the ones that aren’t serving you.
