Catching the Spiral: A Guide to Cognitive Distortions
- Marilyn Hymes
- Jul 16
- 5 min read
Sometimes our most logical-feeling thinking sends us straight down a rabbit hole. Clients often describe it to me as a spiral — a cascade of negative, unkind, and unhelpful thoughts that leaves them feeling awful. And in a strange way, it makes sense. If we keep feeding our brain negative thoughts, we start to feel pretty negative ourselves.
But what if we could catch ourselves right before that spiral starts?
What if, instead of automatically reaching for the worst-case thought, we chose a kinder one? A more helpful one? Isn't that thought just as likely to be true? Instead of asking "what if this sucks" or "what if this falls apart," what if we asked, "what if this is wonderful?"
The first step toward that kind of shift is awareness. Below is a list of common cognitive distortions — patterns of thinking that reliably lead us down a negative path. Read through them, notice which ones sound familiar, and pick just one to start watching for in your own life. You can't change a pattern you don't know you're running. (In a future article, I'll walk through how to deconstruct a thought once you've caught it, so you can turn it into something more helpful.)
What Are Cognitive Distortions?
Cognitive distortions are habitual ways of thinking that distort reality, usually in a negative direction. Researchers have grouped them in different ways, but one useful framework breaks them into four broad categories: self-centered thinking, blaming others, minimizing and mislabeling, and assuming the worst (Barriga et al., 2001).
1. Self-Centered Distortions
These involve thinking in extremes — everything is filtered through an all-or-nothing lens centered on the self.
All-or-nothing thinking Also called "black and white thinking," this is the inability to see shades of gray. Everything is either awful or fantastic, a total failure or completely perfect (Hofmann et al., 2013). Example: "I cheated on my diet, so I might as well eat whatever I want for the rest of the week."
Mind reading This is jumping to conclusions about what someone else is thinking — often assuming the worst — without any real evidence. For example, seeing a stranger's neutral or unpleasant expression and immediately assuming it's about you (Hofmann et al., 2013).
Should statements These are the rules we impose on ourselves about what we "should," "ought," or "must" do. They set up unrealistic expectations that are rarely met, and they tend to breed guilt, shame, and resentment — both toward ourselves and toward others who don't meet our expectations (Beck & Beck, 2011). Example: "I should always be nice regardless of how I feel," or "I shouldn't have made so many mistakes."
2. Blaming Others
The mirror image of self-centered thinking: when something goes wrong, it's always someone else's fault.
Control fallacies This distortion shows up in one of two ways. Either we believe we have no control over our lives and are helpless victims of circumstance, or we believe we're fully in control of everything around us — including other people's feelings (Beck & Beck, 2011). Example: "Relationship conflict is always the other person's fault," or, on the flip side, "It's my fault my parents divorced."
3. Minimization and Mislabeling
These distortions skew how much weight we give to positive versus negative events.
Magnification and minimization Sometimes called the "binocular trick," this distortion exaggerates the negative and shrinks the positive (Beck & Beck, 2011). A generally skilled athlete makes one mistake and decides they're terrible. Another wins a major award and brushes it off as no big deal. Example: "I failed the test, so I'll fail school and never get a job."
Labeling and mislabeling This is an extreme form of overgeneralization, where we assign a harsh label to ourselves or others based on a single incident (Beck & Beck, 2011). A student fails one assignment and calls themselves "an idiot." A waiter gets a bad tip and decides the customer is "a stingy old miser." Mislabeling means reaching for emotionally loaded, inaccurate language to describe what happened — like calling yourself a terrible driver after one accident.
4. Assuming the Worst
This category can be a major driver of depression and includes five distinct distortions (Barriga et al., 2001).
Overgeneralization Drawing a broad, sweeping conclusion from a single event. Over time, this can fuel chronic pessimism about yourself and the world (Beck & Beck, 2011). Example: getting a flat tire and thinking, "This always happens to me. I have terrible luck."
Emotional reasoning Treating your emotions as fact — "I feel it, therefore it must be true." This one is especially common because emotions feel so real and powerful, even when they aren't reliable evidence (Hofmann et al., 2013). Example: "I feel lucky tonight — I'll bet my paycheck on that horse race."
Mental filtering Zeroing in on the negative details of a situation while filtering out everything positive. Over time, this distorts your overall sense of reality (Beck & Beck, 2011). Example: fixating on one piece of critical feedback after a presentation and ignoring all the positive comments.
Disqualifying the positive Similar to mental filtering, but specifically about rejecting or explaining away positive experiences — especially your own accomplishments. Done often enough, it erodes self-esteem and confidence (Beck & Beck, 2011). Example: "I only won because there was no real competition."
Personalization Taking things personally or assigning yourself the blame for things that aren't really about you. This can range from assuming you're the reason a friend seemed quiet all night, to believing you're somehow responsible for everyone else's bad mood. Example: "It's my fault the party failed."
Where to Go From Here
You probably recognized yourself in more than one of these — most of us do. That's normal, and it's not a character flaw. These patterns are simply mental shortcuts our brains default to, especially under stress.
The goal isn't to eliminate every negative thought or to force forced positivity. It's to build enough awareness that you can catch a distortion in the moment, pause, and ask yourself: is this actually true, or is this just the story my brain is used to telling?
Pick one distortion from the list above — the one that felt the most familiar — and simply start noticing it this week. That's it. Awareness comes first; the change follows.
Look out for a follow-up article on how to deconstruct a distorted thought step by step and reshape it into something more useful.
If you're noticing yourself caught in one of these thought spirals — with work, a relationship, or just the voice in your own head — you don't have to untangle it alone. Our therapists at Lumenate can help you catch the pattern, question it, and build a kinder, more accurate way of thinking through Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and other evidence-based approaches.
Reach out to learn more about our therapy services or to schedule a free 30min consultation to see if we're the right fit for you.
References Barriga, A. Q., Landau, J. R., Stinson, B. L., Liau, A. K., & Gibbs, J. C. (2001). Cognitive distortion and problem behaviors in adolescents. Criminal Justice and Behavior. Beck, J. S., & Beck, A. T. (2011). Cognitive Behavior Therapy: Basics and Beyond. Hofmann, S. G., Asnaani, A., Vonk, I. J., Sawyer, A. T., & Fang, A. (2013). The efficacy of cognitive behavioral therapy: A review of meta-analyses. Cognitive Therapy and Research.
Suggested Related Reading
How To Deconstruct Negative Thoughts: A Simple CBT Exercise
The Anxiety Trap: Why Scrolling Feels Good And Makes It Worse
