Cognitive restructuring
'Cognition' is a word used to denote a thought or belief, and 'restructuring' involves challenging a cognition by looking at the evidence for or against it. The basic idea behind cognitive restructuring is that thoughts themselves are not facts; you need to consider whether the thoughts you are having are true and to consider whether there are any other ways to thinking about a particular situation. At first this can be a real challenge: we often believe what we think and don't question our own thoughts. However, often our thinking is biased, and with perfectionism it can be biased towards thinking too negatively and harshly about yourself.
End of Session Two
The aim of this session was to develop an understand of what keeps your perfectionism going and to develop your own maintenance cycle.
Session Three will explore unhelpful thinking styles.
Take home message
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A maintenance cycle is a personalised model of the things that drive you to behave or think in a certain way which may directly or indirectly impact your drive for perfection.
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Drawing the different elements of your diagram is the first step in knowing what changes need to be made.
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Your perfectionism cycle is not fixed, it will change with time and the knowledge you gain from these sessions.
Before you go...
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