Use the Thought Log to integrate everything you have been learning about identifying feelings, the ABCs of mood, and cognitive distortions.
By using the log, you can track any emotionally challenging scenarios that come up during the week and come up with an action plan. Ideally, you should complete this activity as often as possible so your ability to identify your thinking errors gradually becomes second nature.
Further, this sheet can be a helpful tool to use with a therapist to help track your mood over the course of treatment. Together, you can identify triggers, negative thinking patterns, and positive coping tools you can use in future scenarios. Many times, a second set of eyes can help you identify thinking traps you may not have even been aware of. There is no correct “order” in completing the sheet. You can start with a difficult scenario and then list your feelings and thoughts in any order that they come up. Not every automatic thought will apply directly to a cognitive distortion, and that’s okay. The idea is to get it all down and sift through your thoughts and feelings so you can identify your thinking traps and develop an action plan that will help you feel better.
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Goali Saedi Bocci, PhD, is a licensed clinical psychologist in private practice, published author, millennial expert, TEDx speaker, and media personality. Find tips, resources and tools here.
Worksheets
Additional Resources
Additional Resources
What is Micro Self-Care?
Self-care can be thought of in two primary ways: micro and macro. Micro self-care are the small daily touches you can add to your life that make a world of difference. [read more]
Cognitive Distortions Explained
Download the Cognitive Distortions Worksheet It is common for everyone to engage in distorted thinking patterns from time to time. These patterns of thinking are sometimes referred to as thinking traps or cognitive distortions. [read more]
Learning Macro Self-Care
Macro self-care can be thought of as a major event that you may have been looking forward to, like having a spa day or hitting up the sauna with friends. [read more]