What is Black and White Thinking?

What is Black and White Thinking?

All or Nothing thinking, also know as Black and White thinking is a way of thinking in extremes. It can lead to increased anxiety and depression and some research has also linked it to negative perfectionism. It’s words like always, never, everyone, everything, all the time, never, etc… This is really common, and usually one of the first things I notice when working with clients who are struggling with depression or anxiety.

Our brains naturally sort things into different categories as a survival instinct, but when we struggle with mental illness, those survival instincts can become distorted. We may not be in a life or death situation, but our brain approaches the situation like it is. All or nothing thinking can find its way into our finances. Work view, careers and most importantly in our relationships with ourselves and others. 

Is black and white thinking serving you?

Take a minute to think about what kind of language you use with yourself. Do you say phrases that include those all or nothing words. Phrases like, “I always fail” or “ I never take time for myself”? Next, take a moment to ask yourself, are these statements rooted in reality? Is there a time where I didn’t fail, or a time where I chose to take time for myself? My guess, is once you take some time to reflect on this, you’ll be able to recognize how untrue these statements are. 

After you increase your awareness of how often you’re using all or nothing language, you can then begin to work on replacing those all or nothing words with “sometimes, frequently, most of the time, etc…”

If you are interested in learning more about black and white thinking, I have a whole updated blog post, you can read here. If you want to learn more about or reframing your language and challenging negative self-talk I have a FREE reframing negative thoughts workbook that you can download.

If you live in California and are looking for a more individualized approach and ready to work with a therapist who get’s it, I would love to help! I specialize in working with anxious millennial and gen z women. I am currently accepting new therapy clients. You can learn more about me and my offerings here.