Unhelpful Thinking Styles That Fuel Anxiety
- 5 days ago
- 4 min read
A CBT Therapist Explains the Most Common Cognitive Distortions
If you struggle with anxiety, you’ve probably already noticed that your mind can be.… persuasive.
It might convince you something terrible is going to happen.That it’s all your fault.That if you let your guard down, everything will fall apart.
From a CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) perspective, we understand these as unhelpful thinking styles — patterns of thought that feel true in the moment but distort reality and keep anxiety going.
In this post, I’ll walk you through the most common unhelpful thinking styles I see in clients with anxiety — including how they show up, why they’re not your fault, and how we begin to change them.
What Are Unhelpful Thinking Styles?
Unhelpful thinking styles — also called cognitive distortions — are habitual patterns of thought that:
Overestimate threat or danger
Underestimate your ability to cope
Make you feel more anxious, overwhelmed, or stuck
These thoughts aren’t a sign that something is wrong with you. They’re simply shortcuts your brain takes under pressure. When you’re anxious, your mind tries to keep you safe — but it sometimes does this by painting an exaggerated or one-sided picture of reality.
These thinking patterns were first identified by Dr. Aaron T. Beck, the psychiatrist who developed Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). While working with clients experiencing anxiety and depression, he noticed a recurring theme: many of their thoughts followed consistent patterns — and these thoughts felt deeply convincing, but were often exaggerated, inaccurate, or completely untrue. What stood out was that people were not making up these thoughts on purpose — their minds were trying to help them prepare, protect, or understand. But in doing so, they were creating more distress. These mental habits became known as cognitive distortions or unhelpful thinking styles.
CBT helps you become aware of these patterns, step back from them, and build a more balanced perspective.
1. Catastrophising
“What if the worst happens?”
This is one of the most common thinking styles in anxiety. It’s the tendency to imagine the worst-case scenario, often vividly and with a sense of certainty.
Examples:
“If I make a mistake at work, I’ll lose my job.”
“If I don’t text back immediately, they’ll think I’m a terrible friend.”
“If my heart’s beating fast, I’m probably having a heart attack.”
Catastrophising feeds anxiety by amplifying fear and urgency, making it hard to think clearly or respond calmly.
2. All or Nothing Thinking
“It’s either perfect or a disaster.”
This style splits experiences into extremes — success or failure, good or bad, safe or unsafe — with no room in between.
Examples:
“If I don’t feel 100% calm, therapy isn’t working.”
“If I can’t do everything today, I’ve failed.”
“If someone disagrees with me, they must not like me.”
This kind of thinking creates pressure and perfectionism. It often leads to avoidance, because if something can’t be done perfectly, why try?
3. Overestimation of Responsibility
“If something goes wrong, it’s my fault.”
Many people with anxiety carry an intense sense of personal responsibility, even for things outside their control.
Examples:
“If someone I care about is upset, I must have caused it.”
“I have to keep everything under control or something bad will happen.”
“If I cancel plans, I’m letting everyone down.”
This style keeps people hyper-vigilant, guilty, or ashamed — and traps them in anxiety-fuelled decision-making.
4. Fortune Telling
“I know exactly how this will go — badly.”
This is when the mind predicts the future as if it's already decided — and almost always in a negative direction.
Examples:
“I know I’ll panic in the meeting.”
“There’s no point going — I’ll feel awkward and anxious.”
“Therapy won’t work for me.”
Fortune telling takes away your sense of possibility. CBT works by helping you challenge these predictions and test them gently, in real life.
5. Mind Reading
“They must think I’m annoying / weird / failing.”
Mind reading is the assumption that you know what others are thinking — usually something negative — without clear evidence.
Examples:
“They didn’t reply right away — they must be angry with me.”
“She looked away when I was talking — I must have said something stupid.”
“He looked tired — it’s probably because I was too much.”
This thinking style heightens social anxiety, increases self-monitoring, and keeps people stuck in self-doubt.
6. “Should” Statements
“I should be able to cope better.”
These thoughts create pressure, self-criticism and shame — and they often come from old internal rules or expectations.
Examples:
“I shouldn’t feel this anxious.”
“I should be able to handle everything without help.”
“Other people don’t struggle like this — why should I?”
CBT helps clients notice these inner demands and shift from criticism to curiosity.
How CBT Helps You Shift These Patterns
In CBT, we don’t try to “erase” thoughts — we work with them. Together, we learn how to:
Identify and name the thinking style
Understand how it affects your emotions and behaviour
Explore more balanced, realistic ways of thinking
Test beliefs in real-life situations to gather new evidence
Over time, these small shifts can create real change — in your thoughts, your confidence, and how you feel day-to-day.
Final Thoughts: These Patterns Are Common — and Changeable
If you recognise yourself in any of these examples, that’s a good sign. It means you’re developing awareness — the first step toward change.
Unhelpful thinking styles are common, especially in anxiety. But they’re not permanent. CBT offers a clear, evidence-based way to understand these patterns and gently build a more grounded, flexible mindset.
If you're curious about working together or would like to ask any questions about CBT, you’re welcome to get in touch. I offer online therapy across the UK.
Written by Ellie Pickett (MBACP)
CBT Therapist | Online CBT UK
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