ABC model of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy [WHOOSHING] - Hi, my name is Woody Schuldt. Today, we're going to talk about the ABC model of cognitive behavioral therapy. The ABC model helps us to explain why we think the things that we think, why we feel the things that we feel, and why we do the things that we do. It's valuable to understand the ABC model because once we understand how our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors interact, we gain the power to start changing. The ABC model looks like this. First, there's an activating event. An activating event is anything that actually happens to a person. It's just any situation that you encounter. Let's go with the example of running into a friend at the grocery store. You see him in the produce section. You say hi. They say hi right back, and then they return to searching for the perfect banana. That's the activating event. It's the back of what actually happens. Next, we have beliefs about the activating event. Beliefs are what we think about the situation. Two people might have different beliefs about the exact same activating event. What are some different ways that we can think about the situation at the grocery store? One person might think, I must have done something to upset my friend. They're totally ignoring. Another person might think, my friend is really involved in finding that perfect banana. That's their business. I'm just going to move along. The truth is, both of these ways of thinking are possible. We don't actually have evidence either way. Our beliefs usually happen so quickly that we aren't even aware of them. We don't take a second to stop and think, was there evidence for that? This is where things get interesting. Someone who's depressed is more likely to have a negative thought about any situation. Someone who is not depressed is more likely to see the same situation as either neutral or positive. Finally, we have a consequence. The consequence is the result of our belief about the situation. This can include how we feel or what we do because of our beliefs. For example, the individual who felt that their friend ignored them, they might go home feeling hurt, and they might not talk to that friend for a while, thinking that they were upset with them. On the other hand, the individual who thought that their friend was just acting funny for no good reason, they'll probably forget about it, go home feeling just fine, and they might call up their friend that evening to check and make sure everything's OK. The consequence stage is the ABC model has an important effect on our lives. The individual who felt ignored by their friend will probably end up having a worse relationship, which will further reinforce the idea that they've done something wrong. Now, imagine the same pattern applied to almost every relationship in every situation that this person encounters. So that's how the ABC model works. But how can we use it to our advantage? It's not easy, but with practice, we can learn to intervene at either the A, the B, or the C to better control our thoughts, feelings, and emotions. We can intervene in the activating event by avoiding situations that we know usually turn out badly for us. For example, if there's someone you spend time with and whenever you do, there's some horrible outcome, you might recognize that you should probably spend less time with them. Sometimes, that just isn't realistic. In these situations, we can try to change our belief. Going back to the example of the grocery store, the individual that felt that their friend ignored them, they could stop and think, is there really evidence that my friend doesn't like me, or am I just assuming that? Finally, we can intervene at the consequence. We can do this by learning skills such as deep breathing or meditation to help us manage our emotions, maybe reducing depression or anxiety. Thanks for watching. If you like this video, share it and subscribe to our channel down below to see more videos like it. If you're looking for more tools related to mental health, visit our website, therapistday.com.