How do negative thought patterns affect us?
It’s natural to have negative thoughts sometimes. But if you get stuck in a pattern of negative thinking, it can harm your mental health and self-esteem.
Your thoughts, feelings and behaviours are connected, so how you think also affects how you feel and behave.1 That’s why learning how to think in healthier ways can make a big difference to your overall wellbeing.
Changing thought patterns begins with being open-minded about the things you previously assumed to be true about yourself. Practicing curiosity can help us re-imagine how we see ourselves, and the world, and open us up to new opportunities, challenges, and perspectives.
What are negative thought patterns and behaviours?
Thought patterns are the thoughts we repeatedly have about ourselves, others and the world.2 When we become stuck in a cycle of negative thought patterns, it can affect how we feel and behave.1
Negative thought patterns can mean:
- Expecting negative things to happen. For example, “Things will never work out for me.”
- Being critical of ourselves. For instance, “I’m always making wrong choices.”
- Seeing things negatively, such as, “No one likes me.”
- Unwanted thoughts that feel difficult to control. For example, “Something bad is going to happen to my family.”
These negative thought patterns can lead to unhealthy behaviours, such as:
- Withdrawing from our friends or family because we think no one likes us.
- Avoiding new things because we think we’re going to fail anyway.
- Not taking care of ourselves because we think we do not matter.
Why do we get stuck in unhealthy thought and behaviour patterns?
The way we think, feel and behave is mostly automatic. We don’t always know what we’re thinking or feeling, or why we behave in certain ways. When something happens, our reactions often are shaped by things that have happened to us in the past, without consciously thinking about it.
This tends to begin during childhood. If we grew up with high levels of stress, criticism or neglect, we may have learnt to act in protective ways. These are coping mechanisms that helped us survive pain or harm.3
We continue to use these coping mechanisms when we face similar situations later in life. But over time, we can get stuck in these unhealthy thought and behaviour patterns because they feel safe or familiar. Even if they’re unhelpful, our brains repeat what protected us from discomfort or danger in the past.3
For example, if we were often criticised, we might think we’re not good at things. That thought may stop us from applying for a new job, because we don’t think we could cope with it. If something doesn’t go well, it confirms our belief and strengthens the negative thoughts and behaviour.
Drawbacks of unhealthy thought and behaviour patterns
Negative thoughts and self-talk can have an effect on our mental health and self-esteem:
- Self-criticism and negative self-talk can damage our self-esteem: We may believe we’re not capable or worthy and feel less confident.
- Negative thinking can make us feel anxious and stressed: Too much stress can harm our emotional and physical health.4
- Avoidance can stop us from reaching our potential: Avoiding challenges and not trying new things can stop us from following our dreams.
- Assuming the worst of others can harm our relationships: Not trusting people and expecting rejection can cause unnecessary conflict and emotional distance.
- Negative thoughts and behaviours can contribute to mental health conditions: For example, those with negative thoughts may be more at risk of depression, anxiety and loneliness.5
Tips on how to change negative thought patterns
With the right tools and support, we can learn to change negative thought patterns and behaviours. To get started, here are some tips on how to break the cycle of negative thoughts and behaviours.
1. Recognise negative thoughts
What we think is not always based on reality. Our experiences and emotions can lead us to make untrue or unrealistic conclusions about ourselves, others and the world.6
Learning to recognise these “cognitive distortions” can help us avoid slipping back into these patterns.3 Some examples of cognitive distortions include:
- All-or-nothing thinking: “If I make one mistake, I’m a complete failure”
- Overgeneralisation: “I always fail”
- Mental filter or only paying attention to the negative: “Nothing good ever happens”
- Jumping to conclusions without evidence: “I know they hate me”
- Emotional reasoning: “I feel like no one likes me so it must be true”
- “Should” statements: “I should always get perfect grades”
- Personalisation: “My partner is quiet today – it must be because I did something wrong”
- Blame: “I failed because the teacher doesn’t like me”
2. Practise accepting your thoughts with mindfulness
Mindfulness can help us to be more aware of our thoughts without judging or reacting to them.8 We learn to accept them as they are and then let them go. It can be tricky at first, but the more we do it the easier it becomes.
To learn more about mindfulness, you can check out our resource, “How to look after your mental health using mindfulness.”
3. Be curious and open-minded
Our thinking patterns do not make us a bad person. They’re just habits that can be unlearned. So, instead of judging them or ourselves, it’s important to be curious about our thoughts.9 Stay open to different perspectives rather than jumping to conclusions.
We can ask ourselves:
- “Why am I thinking this?”
- “What evidence is there for this thought?”
- “What else could it be?”
- “Is this thought or behaviour helpful?”
4. Replace unhelpful thoughts and behaviours
When we’re curious and aware of our negative thoughts, we can replace them with more helpful ones. It takes a bit of practice but with time, it gets easier.
For example, instead of thinking, “I’m useless”, we can think of the things we’re good at, no matter how small. Alternatively, we could change an, “I can’t do it” thought to “I can try” or try repeating positive statements about ourselves, such as “I am enough” or “I choose to pay attention to the positives.” It can help to write them down on a piece of paper and stick them somewhere we will see them often.
Trying new things and being curious about our world can help us to have more positive thoughts about ourselves. Moments for curiosity and trying new things can be found every day. Take a different route walking the dog, or make a new recipe for dinner. Even small things like these can make life feel more exciting, rewarding, and lively.
Is there anything you’ve wanted to do or try, but you’ve been put off by feeling like you can’t do it? Everyone likes different things but here are some ideas:
- Get creative with writing, painting or making music
- Learn a new skill such as playing an instrument or baking
- Try a new activity such as hiking, dancing or yoga
- Practise your gardening skills by growing plants, vegetables or herbs
5. Be kind to yourself
Blaming or criticising ourselves for negative thoughts and behaviours can make us feel worse.10 Instead, we can try to speak to ourselves like we would to someone we love and appreciate. We can be a coach to ourselves rather than a critic by asking ourselves:
- “What can I do to make me feel a little better?”
- “Is there a kinder way to look at this?”
- “Can I choose a more helpful thought right now?”
“What’s something comforting I can concentrate on?”
Celebrate yourself and all the things you’ve done, big or small. You could try writing down what you like about yourself, your achievements and the compliments people have given you.
Bonus tip: Look after your mental health
When we do things that are good for us, we have more energy and feel better about ourselves. This can make it easier to accept and replace negative thinking and behaviour patterns.
You can try our tips for looking after your mental health.
Useful organisations and resources
If you’re struggling with negative thought patterns and behaviours, it’s okay to ask for help.
You can contact your local GP or specialist mental health service, such as a therapist or counsellor.
Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is designed to help you manage unhealthy thoughts and behaviours. To find out more, you can check out our article on CBT.
You can also find support from mental health organisations, such as:
- NHS Every Mind Matters: Free self-help CBT techniques to deal with unhelpful thoughts.
- Mind Information and support: Information, advice and support for people struggling with their mental health.
- NHS MindEd: Free educational mental health resources.
- Royal College of Psychiatrists: Advice and information on mental health.
If you’re concerned about your mental health, you can also find out more about how to get help through our Get Help page.
- NHS. (n.d). Reframing unhelpful thoughts. https://www.nhs.uk/every-mind-matters/mental-wellbeing-tips/self-help-cbt-techniques/reframing-unhelpful-thoughts/#cycle
- Hawkley, L.C. (2013). Negative Thoughts. In: Gellman, M.D., Turner, J.R. (eds) Encyclopedia of Behavioral Medicine. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-1005-9_1563
- Mansueto, G., Cavallo, C. Palmieri, S., Ruggiero, G.M., Sassaroli, S. & Caselli, G. (2021). Adverse childhood experiences and repetitive negative thinking in adulthood: A systematic review. Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy, 28(3), 557-568. https://doi.org/10.1002/cpp.2590
- Papageorgiou, C. (2006). Worry and rumination: Styles of persistent negative thinking in anxiety and depression. Worry and its psychological disorders: Theory, assessment and treatment, 21-40.
- Kessedjian, A. (2020). Negative Thoughts. In Gellman, M.D.’s (eds) Encyclopedia of Behavioral Medicine. (pp. 1471–1472). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-39903-0_1563
- Kelly J. D., 4th (2019). Your Best Life: Managing Negative Thoughts-The Choice is Yours. Clinical orthopaedics and related research, 477(6), 1291–1293. https://doi.org/10.1097/CORR.0000000000000791
- Frewen, P.A., Evans, E.M., Maraj, N. & Dozois, D.J.A. (2008). Letting Go: Mindfulness and Negative Automatic Thinking, Psychology Publications, 32, 758-774. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10608-007-9142-1
- Le Cunff, AL. (2024). Systematic Curiosity as an Integrative Tool for Human Flourishing: A Conceptual Review and Framework. Integrative Psychological and Behavioral Science, 58, 1876–1894. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12124-024-09856-6
- McIntyre, R., Smith, P. & Rimes, K.A. (2018). The role of self-criticism in common mental health difficulties in students: A systematic review of prospective studies, Mental Health & Prevention, 10, 13-27. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mhp.2018.02.003
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