
Cognitive Distortion - ptwobrussell
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_distortion
======
Cantremeber
The funnest thing about these is how quietly and slowly they creep on. It may
start with putting off a few things but then one day you realize you haven't
showered because you feel like you don't have enough time for it.

~~~
Swizec
Sidenote: that's why behavioral studies never ask "How often do you run" but
instead "When was the last time you ran?", or even better "Describe the last
time you X". People are terrible at assessing their general performance, but
great at recalling semi-specific events.

~~~
amirouche
I was under the impression I was the only one. Now I know other people think
“great at recalling semi-specific events”.

“Describe the last time you X” This makes me think of _transderivational
search_ , a simplistic definition is “thinking”.

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beermann
Sorry for the obligatory, somewhat self-serving post. Our startup, Pacifica
([http://thinkpacifica.com](http://thinkpacifica.com)), focuses on a few tools
that help people identify these cognitive distortions. Specifically, Cognitive
Behavioral Therapy defines a cycle relating how your thoughts affect your
feelings, behaviors, and physical wellbeing (as a fully connected
bidirectional graph). Understanding how your thoughts are distorted can better
prepare you for the next time they crop up, helping you step outside this
cycle. In many cases CBT has been shown to be as effective as psychiatric
drugs in the short term, and even more effective in the long term as it helps
people focus on the source of their anxieties. We're trying to take these same
tools, proven in clinical practices all over the world, and apply them to a
much broader audience.

~~~
NoMoreNicksLeft
> Understanding how your thoughts are distorted can better prepare you

The trouble is that anyone with profound issues no longer has the capacity for
extreme metacognition.

~~~
amirouche
Put the problem the other way around and you will have a wonderful project.
Just saying.

Extreme metacognition, like getting yourself out-of-trouble? Given anybody in
front of problem tailored for them to fail, they will fail. How much people
are not good citizen? More or less than crazy people? Both kind of people harm
themselfs. We call only one “crazy”. We call crazy people “crazy” because we
_don 't know_ how to let them be back and explain in plain text what's harming
them.

People study crazy people not only because it's “easy” to extract knowledge
and models, but because it's the “good thing”.

~~~
pcpolice
“Crazy” is a term you probably don't want to use when referring to mental
health and/or patients/sufferers.

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tvmalsv
The topic is also covered pretty well in the book "Feeling Good: The New Mood
Therapy" by David D. Burns. I think it helps to recognize or understand some
of these behaviors when there's someone in your life that has these kind of
thoughts.

~~~
jamii
+1

Don't be put off by the stigma of the self-help section. The main value of the
book is a collection of clinically-tested exercises for breaking bad habits,
collecting accurate data about your mental state and systematically
disentangling reality from cognitive distortion.

If I had my way this book would be compulsory high-school reading.

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soneca
I was shocked when I saw this on people suffering from _anorexia nervosa_
([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anorexia_nervosa](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anorexia_nervosa)).

They have an obviously unhealthly thin figure (weighting as low as 35kg), and
when they see themselves on the mirror, they affirm they are fat.

~~~
_random_
That's interesting. The opposite effect is quite common as well: there were
numerous recent cases in the news where overweight people would consider
themselves beautiful and normal. Some of them even coined the term "fat
shaming" for the people who are trying to tell them the truth!

~~~
markc
I'm assuming this is snark, and you know full well that body acceptance is not
the same thing as body dysmorphic disorder. Not nice.

~~~
k__
It isn't, the problem is where does the one end and the other one start.

Most people have different opinions about what is a healthy body, even health
professionals.

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jdorfman
I recently finished a Partial Hospitalization Program that taught techniques
to battle distorted/irrational thinking. In the past I would just rely on my
medication but this time I had to meet the meds half way. Without Cognitive
Behavioral Therapy I would be in serious trouble (or dead). If someone here
knows anyone who is suffering from a mental illness; this therapy could really
help them get back on their feet.

~~~
amirouche
I was said, it isn't for everybody, but what is?

------
parallel
I can't remember where I read this but it reminds me of the quote "You've only
ever experienced on thing; your own mind".

~~~
wordbank
The Pali Canon is the first source of quotes like this though.

