CBT Cards
What are automatic thoughts?
In CBT, automatic thoughts are the quick thoughts or images that can appear in response to a situation. They may arrive so quickly that you notice the emotion or urge to act before you notice the thought itself.
The useful question is not “How do I eliminate automatic thoughts?” Everyone has fast thoughts. Reflection becomes more concrete when you notice a thought that is connected with a strong feeling or important behaviour and examine it in context.
A simple noticing exercise
- What was happening just before the feeling changed?
- What went through my mind at that moment?
- Was it an observation, an interpretation, a prediction, a memory, or an image?
- What did I do next?
You do not have to decide immediately whether the thought is true or false. Capturing it accurately is often the first useful step.
In CBT Cards
You can use a reflection card or a structured journal entry to record the situation, thoughts, emotions, body reactions, and behaviour. CBT Cards does not label a thought as a symptom, distortion, or diagnosis.
Sources
Last reviewed by the CBT Cards project: 18 August 2026. This page is educational and does not provide an individual assessment.