12 Common Cognitive Distortions Athletes Use

I woke up this morning…at 2 a.m. to the sound of my cat yaking IN my shoe. Not on the outside, but right inside my shoe. Of all the places he could yak, it had to be in my shoe! After getting up and cleaning that mess, I went to wash my hands, only to discover my soap was empty. I dug through the cabinet for a spare. Nope, not a single one. So, I meandered to the kitchen to wash my hands.

After tossing and turning, I managed to grab about 15 minutes of sleep before my alarm went off. Groggy, grumpy, and tired, I dragged myself out of bed. I started a cup of coffee and then headed to my teen’s room to ensure he was up for school. After getting the typical grunts and whines about getting up, he finally started moving.

As I returned to the kitchen, I discovered that I did start the coffee. However, I had forgotten to put a mug under the coffee maker to catch it. Coffee flooded the counter and dripped onto the floor. I literally smacked myself in the face, just like the SMH emoji!

Getting my son to school was an ordeal. We left late and got stuck behind a school bus that stopped every half-mile to pick up kids. Upon returning home, I checked my email and found that the flower delivery I had ordered for a birthday was canceled and would not be delivered.

To make things worse, as I walked into my room, I accidentally hooked my purse strap on the door, yanking me backward and breaking the strap off my purse. I stood there and stared at the doorknob, feeling frustrated. It was easy to slip into a cognitive distortion known as Negative Focus. This is where a person ignores the positive aspects and only sees the negative ones.

Finding the Silver Linings

Now look, this was a tough morning, to say the least. There were plenty of unpleasant experiences, and there’s no disputing that fact. However, I can also reflect on everything that went right that day. The night before, I went to bed early. So waking at 2 a.m., while not ideal, still meant I got more sleep than I would have if I had gone to bed at my normal time.

My cat puked in my shoe, but it was my “around the house shoes,” not the ones I wear outside. Thankfully, those were clean. I didn’t have soap in my bathroom, but I had some in other places in my home. Although the coffee was a mess, my countertop and floor are easy to clean. It took maybe 5 minutes to tidy everything up, and then I brewed a delicious cup of coffee. My coffee maker worked without problems. I also used my favorite mug because, let’s face it, coffee tastes better from it!

While we ran late getting to school, my son wasn’t tardy for his first hour and had no issues there. Regarding the flower delivery, I called a local florist and had a wonderful experience with her after explaining what happened. She didn’t even charge me the same-day delivery fee! Since then, I have used her for all my floral needs!

As for the broken purse strap, I accepted it. Later that day, I visited Target and bought myself a new purse. I love this one even more!

What Are Cognitive Distortions?

Cognitive distortions are biased thoughts that distort the way we see ourselves and our lives. These negative and irrational thought patterns develop throughout our lives from various factors. Our self-talk heavily influences many of these distortions. This self-talk includes statements from parents, peers, coaches, teachers, and trusted adults. Cognitive distortions can be both innate personality traits and learned behaviors.

When you find yourself in a stressful situation, you may develop a cognitive distortion as a coping mechanism for emotional distress. It’s important to note that cognitive distortions can become automatic and habitual. They contribute to depression and anxiety and can greatly affect performance and self-worth, especially for athletes.

Common Cognitive Distortions in Athletes

1. Mind Reading: Assuming you know what others are thinking and feeling. For example, “I know my team blames me because I dropped that pass.”

2. Negative Focus: Ignoring positive aspects and only seeing negatives. For instance, “I made 7/10 free throws, but I missed 3.” Instead of celebrating success, you dwell on failure.

   
   

3. Catastrophizing: Expecting the worst-case scenario. “I’m going to have a bad game because of my last performance.”

   
   

4. Labeling: Negative labeling of oneself or others. “I suck!”

   
   

5. Overgeneralizing: Believing a single negative event is a pattern. “I missed one goal; now I know I won’t make any.”

   
   

6. Emotional Reasoning: Thinking your feelings reflect reality. “I feel like I can’t do anything right, so it must be true.”

   
   

7. Fortune Telling: Believing the future is set in stone. “I didn’t complete any passes in practice, so I know I won’t in the game.”

   
   

8. Personalization: Feeling guilty for things beyond your control. “I missed that pass” when it was uncatchable.

   
   

9. Owning the Truth: Believing your opinion is the absolute truth. “I just played the worst game of my life.”

   
   

10. Just-World Thinking: Assuming everything will balance fairly. “They called a foul on me, so they’ll obviously call it on them.”

11. Control Fallacy: Believing you can control everything. This thinking ties into “perfectionism.”

How to Change Cognitive Distortions

Changing cognitive distortions into more helpful thoughts is possible. Here are some strategies:

• Cognitive Reframing: This skill helps us look at situations differently. Instead of finding only the negative, we seek more plausible yet helpful views.

• CBT Thought Challenging: Similar to reframing, this structure allows you to notice your automatic negative thoughts and their emotional impact. You can analyze evidence supporting these thoughts and find alternative, more helpful ones.

  
  

• Changing Self-Talk: Shift negative self-talk to positive encouragement. The more you repeat positive messages, the more they become true for you.

  
  

• Therapy: Processing experiences or traumas with a licensed professional can help clear out cognitive distortions. This can be through talk therapy or EMDR.

  
  

As we strive for a balanced mindset, remember to acknowledge both the positive and negative aspects of our lives. It's easier said than done, but embracing the whole picture allows us to grow and thrive.