COVID-19 has shifted the ways we live our daily lives and inter with our environment. Prior to COVID-19, we likely did not find ourselves worrying about whether it’s too risky to eat outdoors at a restaurant, or too risky to hug a loved one. As we find ourselves navigating decision making during this pandemic, we might notice feeling overwhelmed, confused, and conflicted more often. The magnitude of decision-making has increased in frequency and intensity, as we now think more deeply about day to day decisions that used to be routine (e.g.meeting a friend, buying groceries) as well as navigating how to get our more serious needs met (e.g., doctor’s appointments). This places us at a higher risk of experiencing decision fatigue, which is the product of being exhausted from the amount of decisions to be made, and/or feeling unable to make a clear decision.
Here are some of the common cognitive distortions that can contribute to decision fatigue:
Emotional Reasoning:
If you notice that you are making decisions based on your emotional state, you are probably using emotional reasoning. For example, one afternoon you could be feeling frustrated with quarantine and decide to eat in a restaurant with a friend; and the next morning you could be feeling fearful and avoid going out at all. If you frequently vacillate between lower and higher risk behaviors because of a passing mood, you will likely feel unanchored in your decision making. Ultimately, you will experience decision fatigue because your approach is inconsistent, and therefore less efficient. During this time of many unknowns and endless uncertainties, it is essential that we draw upon our “rational minds” more often than our “emotional minds.”
All or Nothing Thinking:
This occurs when we create extremes in our minds, in an effort to understand an ambiguous situation. However, we then miss important information between these two poles. For example, a binary of “safe or not safe,” creates a rigid and high pressure approach to decision making. This distracts us from evaluating risk on a spectrum, and then making a decision based on weighing up the risk level and our personal risk tolerance.
Jumping to Conclusions:
Prior to COVID-19, we generally knew what to expect when interacting with our environment at, for example, workplaces, stores, and social events. When making decisions about whether and how to engage in these situations now, we might find ourselves jumping to conclusions about how an experience will be. For example, if you are anxious about eating outdoors at a restaurant, you are more likely to jump to conclusions that the experience will lead to contracting COVID-19. Predictions could include that the tables will be arranged too close together, and that the restaurant will be very crowded. This could get us stuck in avoiding situations entirely, preventing us from working to collect information that would either support or refute our predictions.
Cognitive distortions like those described above are more likely to occur when our thoughts match the intensity of our emotions, rather than being grounded in current facts or evidence. During COVID-19, we are particularly vulnerable to experiencing emotion-driven thoughts because there is less information (e.g. facts and evidence), and less personal experience, to ground us.
Cognitive restructuring is one intervention that we can use to reduce distress and draw from our “rational” minds. For example, if you notice experiencing a moment of anxiety about going to the grocery store due to fear about safety, but have experience going to the grocery store during the pandemic, you could use cognitive restructuring to challenge the anxious thought. Start with identifying the facts about your experience at the grocery store, and factors that made it feel more risky and less risky, then use those facts to challenge the rigidity about the grocery store being unsafe. This intervention would restructure the thought “I won’t go to the grocery store because it is not safe” to “I feel more comfortable going to the grocery store at times that I know it is less crowded because I have more space for social distancing while I shop.” This restructuring is grounded in risk level and experience; taking into account the anxious feeling without using it to jump to rigid and limiting conclusions.
At CTWPS, we can support you through identifying and challenging distorted thought processes, to feel more anchored in your decision making. In addition to challenging cognitive distortions, we can also reduce decision fatigue by engaging in behaviors that make the process more efficient and sustainable. Part II of this blog will include helpful behavioral interventions, and will be coming in the next few weeks!