Helping Lauren Change Negative Thoughts to Positive Thoughts

Lauren’s latest visit to Dr Johann had her working on the table below.

Chart to Identify Unhelpful & Helpful Thoughts

The purpose of this exercise: How to change negative thoughts to positive thoughts.
This came about because Lauren has a big (gigantous) fear and dislike of water. She thinks she will drown in the pool. She tells us it is dirty. She hates the feeling of being splashed even with sprinkles of water. So she shuns swimming as much as possible.


Kevin and I, on the other hand are trying to get Lauren to understand that she must learn to swim, because it is a life-saving skill. She does not need to love it, but she should try to live with it.


So, for many years, we have been trying to get Lauren to swim – with and without her swimming cap, with and without her float. One time, she tried swimming without the float, and she felt herself sinking. That freaked her out even more!


And then there is the vomiting after the swimming. Intense emotions of triumph that she has managed to swim without her cap and float, coupled with even more intense anxiety…results in Lauren rushing to the toilet to vomit after her swims.


But she has agreed she will continue trying. She is a real trooper. Such resilience. And I must remind myself to continue to encourage her and be more patient.


So, our task is to identify negative thoughts, for example,

NEGATIVE THOUGHTS
I might drown if I swim at the deep end without my float.
My book will be destroyed if my friend touches it.
The movie I am watching will be gone if my brother uses the laptop

Thought Process Leading to Emotional, Physical and Behaviour Changes

POSITIVE THOUGHTS

We discuss with Lauren the process that leads her to positive thoughts like,

“You can practise swimming without your float at the shallow end first, so you know you won’t sink without the float.”
“Think about how you can operate the laptop and find the spot where you last stopped at the movie.”


This exercise hopefully helps Lauren (and all of us who are more pessimistic in nature) to build new pathways in her brain. From default negative thoughts to thought-out positive thinking.


Cup Half Full or Half Empty. How do you see your life?