In your quest to track your negative thoughts, you may have had trouble challenging them and you may now be wondering how to challenge them.
The following 10 questions will help you to challenge any negative thought. When you have a negative thought, try to answer these 10 questions:
1. What’s the evidence that the thought is true?
2. What’s the evidence that the thought is not true?
3. What is the worst possible thing that could happen and how would you cope if it did happen?
4. What’s the best possible thing that could happen?
5. What would most likely happen and how would you cope if that happened?
6. What’s another way of thinking about this situation? What else could be going on?
7. What would you tell a friend of yours if they were in this situation and had the same negative thought?
8. What’s the effect of believing the negative thought?
9. What would happen if you didn’t believe the negative thought?
10. What are some alternative thoughts in this situation?
Ashley, Health Educator
