Zandvoort, Netherlands

Practice unhooking from negative self-judgments by labeling them to create mental distance and detachment.

English

This is an exercise from the ACT therapy model, which helps individuals unhook from negative or painful thoughts.  Unhooking means creating distance between the Self and the thought in order to not get "jerked around" by it.

2-Minute Exercise To Unhook From Difficult Thoughts

So bring to mind a nasty, negative self-judgment or other thought that hooks you. And starting now, I want you to buy into it. Get all caught up in it. Really get hooked by this thought. Don't challenge or dispute it. Buy into it. I'm a loser. I'm unworthy. I'm not good enough. Really get absorbed in this thought. Really let this thought pull you in. Now silently replay that thought in your head, adding these words in front. I'm having the thought that... So, maybe, I'm having the thought that I'm incompetent. Now silently replay it again. This time, the phrase is a bit longer. I notice I'm having the thought that... So, I notice I'm having the thought that I'm a loser. And now notice what happened. Did you get a sense of unhooking from the thought? Did you get a sense of distance or detachment from it? Perhaps a little. Perhaps a little bit more with the second phrase than the first phrase. And if that didn't happen for you, I recommend that you pick a different thought and run through the exercise again with a different thought.