Avoid Self-sabotage

The steps we take to maintain our behavioral health are both unique to us and universal to humanity. At TelePsycRX we recognize that each person’s journey will be different, but we want to share some of the common traps and how to avoid them. This week we are talking about how to avoid self-sabotage.

The act of self-sabotage is most often one that we don’t even think about consciously, in the moment. However, when we look back at patterns in our lives, and we see the same situations occurring over and over.

You can define self-sabotage as any action you take that does not help you reach your goal’s. Often, we make decisions in the heat of the moment, that we later regret. The key to avoiding these decisions in the future is to examine the thoughts and feelings that lead up to the decision.

When we take a moment to honestly evaluate our motivations, we can often find deeper thoughts and feelings that lead to what seemed like an instant decision. For example, you are in the grocery store, and you suddenly decide, “I deserve ice cream,” even though you are on a diet. When you look closer at the motivation, you may realize that the full thought was, “I am lonely, and I want ice cream to make me feel better.” So, the key to avoiding the self-sabotage of your diet, is to engage in more social activities or to reach out to your friends and family.

Identifying these thoughts and dealing with the underlying motivations can be difficult. Speaking with a counselor or therapist about recurring self-sabotaging patterns can help you break the cycles that are preventing you from reaching your goals.