Thinking Traps in Recovery
A client misses one group and tells themselves, “I’ve already messed up my treatment, so it doesn’t matter if I skip the rest of the day.”
Magnification & Minimization
A client sees peers laughing and immediately believes they are being talked about or judged.
Jumping to Conclusions
A client tells themselves, “I should be stronger than this. I shouldn’t need help.”
Should Statements
A client predicts they will fail outpatient treatment before even attending the first session.
Fortune Telling
It was only one drink.
Minimizing
After a minor argument with staff, a client thinks, “I’m definitely getting discharged, I’ll relapse, and I’ll lose everything.”
Catastrophizing
A client thinks, “Staff probably think I’m just manipulating the system,” without any direct evidence.
Mind Reading
A client believes, “If I can’t stay sober perfectly, then I might as well keep using.”
All-or-Nothing Thinking
A client believes missing one aftercare appointment will lead to immediate relapse and homelessness.
Catastrophizing
It was only my 2nd DUI.
Minimizing
A client relapses once and says, “I always fail at recovery. Treatment never works for me.”
Overgeneralization
A client states, “I know I’ll relapse as soon as I leave here, so what’s the point of trying?”
Fortune Telling
The belief that one is responsible for events outside of their own control.
What is personalization
A client believes recovery only “counts” if they never experience cravings after discharge.
All-or-Nothing Thinking
I walked in the room and everyone stopped talking, they must have been talking about me.
Personalization
A client believes that as long as they pray or “stay positive,” they don’t need to attend groups or follow their relapse-prevention plan.
Magical Thinking
A client feels anxious and concludes, “Because I feel this uncomfortable, something bad must be about to happen.”
Emotional Reasoning
Nobody cares about me
overgeneralization
A client feels nervous about leaving treatment and decides that means they are not ready for discharge.
What is emotional reasoning?
I felt upset by my dog getting hit by a car so I relapsed.
emotional reasoning.
A client assumes the therapist changed the group topic because “they’re mad at me for not participating.”
Personalization
A client completes a full week of groups but says, “That doesn’t count because it was an easy week.”
Disqualifying the Positive
No one ever helps me out
overgeneralization
A client tells themselves, “I should be cured by now if treatment really worked.”
Should Statements
I got angry, that's why I threw my phone and broke it.
Emotional reasoning.