Guided Mindful Breathing Exercises

At the heart of CBT(complete explanation of CognitiveBehavioral Therapy), is the notion that we must be able to recognize the thought and behavioral patterns that are contributing to our depression.  It has been empirically proven, that if we can learn to recognize and change our thought patterns by reconstructing our thought patterns and behaving differently, we can then begin to learn to deal with and overcome depression.  The first step in learning to deal with your depression, is to become aware of the irrational  beliefs that are leading to the thoughts and behaviors that are contributing to your depression.   There are several techniques that you can use to learn to be fully present in the moment thus opening your minds to the irrational beliefs that are contributing to your  irrational beliefs.  One such technique is  guided mindful breathing exercises.

Guided mindful breathing exercises will allow you  to become fully aware of the present and not so consumed in your head with the past, future and irrational thoughts and beliefs.   It allows you to be aware of those irrational beliefs that are essentially causing your depression and begin to challenge and eventually change them.  Use the guided breathing exercise below on a daily basis to begin the first step in learning to deal with and eventually overcome your depression.  You may be uncomfortable at first, but struggle through the uncomfortable feelings, recognize them and move on.
  

Guided breathing exercises allow you to use the most powerful mind awareness tool we have, our breath, to be fully in the moment.  Your mind will wonder as you do the mindful exercise below but you will use your breath and the recognition of the moment to bring yourself back to the present.  If you do the mindful breathing exercise below every day, you will begin to take the most important step in learning to deal with your depression; recognizing the irrational thoughts that are leading to your depression.  Once you learn to be able to be in the moment when you are totally consumed in your head by your thoughts, you will then learn step 2; the behavioral and psychological techniques needed to combat your irrational thoughts and move closer to dealing with and eventually ending your depression. 

Guided Mindful Breathing Exercise (You need to use Chrome or Internet Explorer to listen.) Breathing in, I calm body and mind. Breathing out, I smile. Dwelling in the present moment I know.. This is the only moment.                                                    Thich Nhat Hanh

As you learn to master step 1, begin to write down (journal) your thoughts, feelings and behaviors.  Begin to keep track the ABC's of your depression: Activating Event, Beliefs and Consequences.

• A – Activating Event: Something happens in the environment around you.


• B – Beliefs: You hold a belief about the event or situation.


• C – Consequence: You have an emotional response to your belief.

You can use the tool below to help you effectively analyze your thoughts and actions that are causing your depression.   You can use the tool daily to learn to control and change your cognitive distortions and rid yourself from depression.  

First I provide a chart of the cognitive distortions and their meanings.

Secondly, I provide an example of how to use the form.

Lastly I provide the form for you to use on  a daily basis to help you learn to deal with your depression

Cognitive Distortions:

Cognitive Distortion	Meaning
All-or-Nothing Thinking	The tendency to see everything in absolutes; black or white
Mental Filter	Focusing on only one aspect of a situation; usually one negative aspect
Discounting the positive	Focusing only on the negative and negating the positive
Overgeneralization	When we use language like “always”, “never” “can’t” “impossible” “that’s just my luck”
Jumping to Conclusions	Mind reading and fortune telling;
Magnification	Glorifying or Magnifying problems and minimizing positive situations
Emotional Reasoning	Evaluating a situation based on how you feel: I feel… therefore I think…
Should Statements	Thinking in absolutes. Should statements are self-defeating because “they” assume we are perfect
Labeling	When we think the behavior represents the person rather than just focusing on the behavior as a separate event.
Personalization and Blame	Blaming yourself or just one person when there are many factors that contributed to the situation

Example:

Here’s What Happened:

I gave a very important presentation at work today. It was a flop.  I’m sure to get demoted or fired.

I Feel:

My Negative Thoughts Are:

I always give bad presentations.

My manager is going to tell my boss and I’ll get demoted or fired.

I hate having to deal with this.  This is going to ruin my whole life.

You will now choose from the drop down menu the cognitive distortions that represent your negative thoughts. 

You will now practice replacing your negative thoughts/cognitive distortions with rational, healthy thoughts.

My Rational Thoughts Are:

I know my presentation had some impact because my coworkers were taking notes and nodding their heads.

I have no idea what my manger was thinking.  She’s obviously very busy and probably did not have time to speak with me yet.  I will be sure to check in with her first thing tomorrow

This is not the end of the world.  This is something I can manage and control.  If I need to make some adjustments, I will work harder next time.  I’m grateful for my life.

Now I Feel:

Active Tool:

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