Breaking Free from Negative Thinking Patterns

Negative thinking patterns impact mental wellbeing through learned helplessness and psychological inflexibility, but evidence-based therapeutic approaches like cognitive-behavioral therapy can help individuals develop healthier explanatory styles and build resilience with professional guidance.

Ever catch yourself turning a small setback into proof that everything's wrong? Negative thinking patterns can trap us in a cycle of self-doubt, but they don't have to define your story. Learn how therapy can help you rewrite those internal conversations and build a more balanced, hopeful perspective.

Understanding Negative Thinking Patterns and Their Impact on Mental Wellbeing

A person’s outlook can significantly influence many aspects of their life, from personal relationships to overall mental wellbeing. While pessimism and keeping expectations low might seem like a protective strategy, this approach may actually cause more harm than good. Let’s explore the mechanics of negative thinking patterns, how they manifest in behavior and decision-making, and their potential effects on mental health—plus how to find support through ReachLink’s licensed clinical social workers if you’re looking to develop a more balanced perspective.

Negative thinking patterns and how we explain our experiences

How we explain events to ourselves is closely associated with our general outlook on life. Explanatory style is a concept first developed by Martin Seligman, a psychology researcher and former president of the American Psychological Association. The term refers to the ways in which a person interprets and understands the world around them and how they explain the world to themselves and other people. A negative explanatory style in particular is associated with pessimism and can result in “learned helplessness,” or a person’s belief that they lack control over their own environment and any stressors they may encounter.

With a negative explanatory style, a person tends to explain any adverse events in their life as the result of some immutable core personality trait(s) within themselves. Because of this immutable nature of the cause of the disappointing event, they come to believe that negative events will continue and will impact many different areas of their life—not just the area where one occurred.

With a positive explanatory style, in contrast, a person is more likely to interpret upsetting events as caused by outside forces that are specific to the situation. They may also believe that the event is unlikely to repeat itself or to extend to other areas of their life.

A real-world example of positive and negative explanatory style

To better understand these concepts, let’s apply explanatory styles to an everyday situation: missing the bus. With a positive explanatory style, you might think about the situation this way: “I missed the bus because, on my way to the stop, I tripped over a rock and spilled my bag everywhere, so I had to stop to pick everything up. It wasn’t great, but that’s pretty unlikely to happen again.” This explanation demonstrates the three core components of a positive explanatory style:

• The event was caused by outside forces (you missed the bus because your bag spilled, and you had to take a moment to gather everything).
• The event’s cause was specific to the situation (you spilled your bag because you tripped on a rock, not because you are a habitual bag-spiller).
• The event’s cause was finite and fixable (the rock was a random bit of bad luck that is unlikely to repeat on future walks to the bus stop, and you may learn to watch your step more closely in that same area next time).

In contrast, a negative explanatory style might frame the same event as follows: “I missed the bus because I’m fundamentally slow and unpunctual. Yeah, I tripped on the rock and spilled my bag, but if that hadn’t happened, something else would have stopped me from getting to the stop on time. I somehow always find a way to mess up. How will I ever progress in my career if I can’t even catch a bus on time?” This explanation features the three contributing factors of a negative explanatory style:

• The event is caused by a core personality trait (you are slow and unpunctual).
• The event’s cause will impact other areas of life (you’ll never get ahead at work).
• The event’s cause can’t be fixed or changed, so it and/or other undesirable events will happen again (you’ll never be able to catch the bus on time because something will always stand in your way—and many times, that something will be your own incompetence).

Unsurprisingly, a negative explanatory style can lead to persistent negative thinking and emotions, which may result in mental and even physical health consequences.

Other traits often associated with a negative outlook

While having a negative explanatory style may be the primary characteristic of pessimistic thinking (and a potential cause of many related traits), it’s not the only behavior a person with these tendencies might demonstrate. They may struggle to maintain a balanced perspective—for example, focusing more on their own flaws than on their strengths. In some situations, they may even become irritated by people who have a more optimistic outlook, finding it difficult to accept their opinions and contributions.

Even when people with negative thinking patterns believe their outlook is more “accurate” than their “idealistic” counterparts, they may call themselves “realists” to avoid the negative connotation of “pessimist.” When positive outcomes do occur, they may show genuine surprise but will likely continue their tendency to prepare for the worst. That’s because negative thinking is often used as a defense mechanism. People with this tendency may rationalize that you can never be disappointed if you don’t get your hopes up in the first place.

A sense of foreboding may also accompany positive events for someone with pessimistic tendencies. They may wonder how long things will stay good before ‘the other shoe drops.’ Or, when achieving a goal, they might focus primarily on the downsides—such as getting a sought-after promotion but fixating on the increased workload in their new role. They may not trust that positive developments or relationships will remain positive or are even deserved, making it difficult to trust others and show vulnerability. People with negative thinking patterns may believe others are judging them even more harshly than they judge themselves and generally struggle to accept compliments. They often have trouble recognizing the positive in themselves, other people, or the world.

Negative thinking and mental wellbeing

Negative thinking patterns can impact mental health in various ways, including some that might not be immediately obvious. One study suggests that COVID-19-related stress and anxiety in adults with pessimistic tendencies during the height of the pandemic appeared to be more closely tied to a sense of “psychological inflexibility” than pessimism alone. Researchers define psychological inflexibility as the use of dysfunctional coping mechanisms to avoid unpleasant feelings or events—a characteristic of negative thinking—which significantly contributed to adverse psychological effects.

Consider also a 2020 study suggesting that neither optimism nor pessimism is inherently healthier—that realism may actually be most beneficial for mental health. Researchers propose that this might be because it’s the gap between expectations—positive or negative—and reality that tends to be the most mentally harmful.

Nevertheless, a preoccupation with negative outcomes can still affect mental health in various ways. People with pessimistic tendencies often feel isolated in their worries and believe that nobody—especially those with a positive outlook—cares about things as deeply as they do. They may have low self-esteem and engage in higher levels of negative self-talk, potentially behaving in self-sabotaging ways in relationships or avoiding them altogether. Low self-esteem and negative self-talk are frequently associated with conditions like anxiety and depression, while a lack of close social relationships has been linked to negative mental health outcomes more generally.

Additionally, people with negative thinking patterns may tend to use less effective coping mechanisms for stress, such as denial or emotional distancing. They’re typically less likely to take reasonable risks in various life domains—career, relationships, personal pursuits—because they anticipate failure. This approach can lead to missed opportunities, fewer positive experiences, and limited social connections.

Developing a more balanced perspective with ReachLink

Recognizing and addressing negative thinking patterns is a critical step toward improving mental wellbeing. ReachLink’s licensed clinical social workers specialize in working with individuals to identify these patterns and develop healthier ways of interpreting their experiences. Through personalized counseling and evidence-based techniques such as cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), clients can learn to challenge unhelpful thoughts, cultivate a more balanced explanatory style, and build resilience against stressors.

Developing a more balanced perspective does not mean eliminating realistic concerns or ignoring challenges. Instead, it involves fostering greater psychological flexibility—being able to acknowledge negative feelings without becoming overwhelmed by them, while also appreciating positive experiences without undue skepticism. This shift helps create healthier emotional responses, better decision-making, and enriched relationships.

If you find yourself caught in cycles of pessimism or negative thinking, remember that support is available, and change is possible. By working with ReachLink’s professionals, you can take meaningful steps toward breaking free from these patterns, enhancing your mental health, and embracing a more hopeful, balanced outlook on life.