Depression: Cognitive Therapy evidence to support a false assumption. Want to believe the earth is flat? Go to Florida and look around; it looks flat. More evidence? Go to west Texas and look around; it looks flat. More evidence yet? Gee, you’re a hard sell. Go to Manitoba and look around; it sure looks flat there. It is only when you look for evidence that the world is not flat that the truth emerges — it’s not flat!
Sometimes someone says, “Nothing I do is right. Everything I do goes wrong.” And this person easily cites lots of things they messed up to support their view. If you look at them and say, “Wait a minute. Your clothes are on right-side-out. Your shoes are on the right feet. You drove here without killing anyone. What do you mean everything you do is wrong?” this may lead to a second cognitive distortion, “Oh, those are little things. It’s the important things I mess up.” One may respond to this statement by saying, “So it’s only important if you mess up? Does that really make sense? Have you ever tried wearing your shoes on the wrong feet; perhaps it’s more important than you think. And wouldn’t you suppose the person you didn’t kill while you were driving here thinks that’s important?”
It’s been found people’s strengths and weaknesses are often the opposite sides of the same coin. They do what they are good at, when it might be better to try something else. This idea seems to work in depression. People are encouraged to “be responsible” or “take responsibility.” But if people take responsibility for things beyond their capacity to control, it sets them up for failure and depression. Depressed people often seem laudable in their willingness to try to solve problems around them, but when it begins to hurt, it’s time to quit. It may be worthwhile reminding oneself that one does not have to be perfect to be good, and good enough is often just that — good enough. (workersxzcompxzkit) Many problems in life can be approached usefully by first asking “Who owns this problem?” If it really isn’t yours, don’t volunteer!
Note: Knowing this information, may help a WC Manager communicate more effectively with an employee with this type of problem.
Author: Sandford S. Leffingwell, M.D., MPH is a board certified specialist in occupational medicine, with degrees from Harvard University, University of Colorado School of Medicine and The Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health. He can be reached at ssl@hlmconsultants.com.
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