Cognitive behavioural therapy for procrastination
It is perfectly natural to procrastinate occasionally. Sometimes our self-confidence can falter, and we delay tasks that worry us and can lose sight of our goals temporarily.
However, for some people procrastination can be a serious issue, and sufferers experience problems in all aspects of their lives. Chronic procrastinators will hesitate in starting or completing important work projects, decide not to act on medical issue, or avoid difficult conversations with family or friends.
Procrastinators will prioritise non-urgent tasks over more urgent ones, postponing situations or conversations that they find emotionally difficult until another time. This behaviour can build anxiety and the person can enter a spiral of procrastination and justifications for delaying the tasks they would rather put off.
Avoidance, distraction, denial and trivialisation of the situation are all common justifications used by a person with tendencies towards procrastination. But the task, medical issue or difficult conversation does not go away, and so the person is prevented from living a fulfilled life and can develop negative thought patterns that lead to stress, anxiety and depression.
How can cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) help with procrastination?
If chronic procrastination becomes an established behaviour trait, an accredited CBT professional can help the client to process and deal with the negative behaviour patterns. This acts to lessen the negative impact procrastination can have on a person’s life and relationships.
A common technique that CBT counsellors use is behavioural activation, which helps to change the way a person approaches a task, rather than avoiding it altogether. By reflecting on their traits and expectations of undertaking the task they will be made more aware of their thoughts and feelings towards it.
When we procrastinate, we can become subjected to a combination of negative emotions, such as stress, worry or guilt, which only serves to leave a person feeling exhausted and run-down. To combat these feelings, CBT promotes mindfulness which is designed to separate a client’s contorted view of the task with the real situation. This helps them to approach tasks in a more realistic manner and minimise the negative emotional reactions previously associated with tackling the task.
Changing the way a person thinks about a task will build their confidence. A therapist will work with a client to decide how helpful their current thought patterns are and move to identify the issue, establish attainable goals and encourage reality checks to build new and productive habits that lead to fulfilment and personal growth.
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Interventions Manchester provides the specialist support our clients need to make sense of how they are feeling. We operate in a supportive and compassionate space to enable clients to better understand and manage their emotions to make positive lifestyle changes and live life to the fullest.
