We are going to destroy the beliefs that create anxiety: the table of ideas

Often there are many events that in our day to day create anxiety, an intense suffering that makes us get a phobia of certain words, events, or people, and we cannot find the reason why it is being generated.

That is why I bring you a practical exercise with which you will be able to address those limiting ideas linked to anxiety.

• Related article: "Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy: what is it and what principles is it based on?"

The cognitive table

I don't know if you know, but our ideas have different aspects that are very marked by uncertainty (how much we believe it) and on the other hand, emotional intensity (how much we feel it). I would like classify ideas into three categories that I show you below and that will help us to do this exercise better. These are:

• Opinions.
• beliefs.
• convictions.

An opinion makes us feel relatively safe, but unfortunately this is temporaryas it can be easily changed. For example, we may think that a t-shirt looks good on us, but if three friends tell us that it is not our style, we will surely forget this opinion. So, if we look at this is the nature of most opinions, we will realize that they fade easily and are often based on a few references that we look at in a moment given.

Secondly we have Beliefs are formed when you begin to develop a base on a much larger idea, which is what we will later call the legs of the table of ideas. In addition, we will have a strong emotion about that idea, which will make us feel totally sure of it. In some cases this can be negative, as people with strong beliefs close off new information and to get them to change their opinion, it will be necessary to interrupt their pattern and get the question.

And finally we have the conviction; this is superior to belief, eclipses it, because brings with it a great emotional intensity that is linked to an idea. If we pay attention, when we are sure of something (having a conviction) and that idea is denied to us, we will feel angry and uneasy and not we will be for the task of questioning our references, for which many times, unfortunately, they become a obsession.

As we can see, the problem occurs when we carry out convictions based on ideas that support it and make it a strong position. For this reason, I would like to give you a very simple exercise that will help you to address this blindness that we have reached.

• You may be interested in: "The 7 types of anxiety (characteristics, causes and symptoms)"

How to do the exercise?

The cognitive table is a very practical exercise, in the following drawing I show it to you:

As you see, in the upper table we will place the conviction; For example, the idea that we are going to fail in delivering a university project, and below we will write the ideas that support this conviction that is causing us anxiety. In this example I have chosen four ideas, but your table can be very modern and have five leg-ideas, or be smaller and have three. I would love for you to customize the exercise.

So the ideas that come up are:

• Idea 1: I don't know what's going to happen.
• Idea 2: lack of confidence.
• Idea 3: If I don't turn in this paper on time, I won't graduate and I'll lose a job opportunity.
• Idea 4: I have chosen the wrong topic.

ok once put I would like you to carry out an individual analysis of each one in order to understand its implications. That is why I am going to show you how to do it with the first idea, so that you can apply it with each one.

You are going to take a notebook (I suggest you use it from now on for practical exercises of this type) and in it you are going to write five columns with some headings in column order that will be: idea, thought, emotion, behavior and thought alternative.

As you can see, the first four columns are very easy to identify, but the fifth is the most complex, because we have to put an alternative thought that is, so to speak. a reexplanation of the idea behind that negative conviction. Therefore, we must look for a thought (I like to call it "lever") that will make you relax when looking at it from this angle; In this last column it is important that we try to make the explanation of the problem sensible and that we do so by understanding it.

Apply this exercise on the thoughts or ideas that cause you discomfort, so that you can deal with them in a different way. Dedicate your time and learn to manage these problems from another perspective. Create your table of ideas and restructure your anxieties so that you can solve them.

Anxiety problems? Do I help you

If you want to reduce your anxiety and boost your emotional well-being with the professional support of a psychologist, do not hesitate to contact me. We will be able to start the sessions without leaving home and with an appropriate price for current times.

My name is Javier AresI am a General Health Psychologist and one of my specialties is the treatment of anxiety. With my help you will be able to solve the complications that arise from the beliefs that you have been generating and that cause you stress.

If it seems good to you we can start working on you, for this do not hesitate to contact me through this page.