Trauma · CPT

Patterns of Problematic Thinking

CPT — the seven patterns that keep stuck points stuck

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Seven patterns of thinking that keep stuck points stuck. For each pattern, write down an example of one of your stuck points that fits. A stuck point can show up in more than one pattern.

Jumping to conclusions

Drawing conclusions when the evidence is missing or contradicts them.

My example

Exaggerating or minimizing

Making something a much bigger — or much smaller — deal than the facts support.

My example

Disregarding important aspects

Leaving out parts of the situation that don't fit the belief.

My example

Oversimplifying

Making it all good / all bad, all right / all wrong.

My example

Over-generalizing

Taking one event and applying it to all events, places, or people.

My example

Mind reading

Assuming people are thinking negatively of you without evidence.

My example

Emotional reasoning

Using how you feel as the proof that the belief must be true.

My example

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About this worksheet

Once a client has practiced challenging individual stuck points, CPT zooms out to the patterns those stuck points share. The Patterns of Problematic Thinking Worksheet introduces seven habitual thinking styles that keep PTSD symptoms intact: jumping to conclusions, exaggerating or minimizing, disregarding important aspects of a situation, oversimplifying, overgeneralizing, mind reading, and emotional reasoning. The client picks two or three stuck points and tags which patterns they exemplify. The clinical move is the meta-level recognition — once a client sees that several different beliefs all share the same underlying habit (say, overgeneralizing from one experience to all of life), challenging the habit becomes more efficient than challenging each belief separately. This worksheet typically lives at session 7 in the standard protocol, after Challenging Questions has done its work, and it sets up the integrative Challenging Beliefs Worksheet used in the protocol's final phase.

When to use it

Session 7 of standard CPT, after Challenging Questions Worksheets are part of the client's repertoire.
As daily homework — identify patterns in two to three stuck points per day for a week.
Particularly useful when over-accommodated stuck points dominate (broad generalizations about safety, trust, or control).
Compatible with general CBT psychoeducation around cognitive distortions, but the CPT taxonomy is tighter (7 patterns vs 12+ in classic Burns lists).

How to use it

1
Introduce the seven patterns
Walk each definition with a quick example. Use examples from the client's own ABC worksheets when possible — concrete beats abstract.
2
Pick stuck points to tag
Two or three from the log. Don't try to tag the whole list at once — the point is depth of recognition, not coverage.
3
Mark all patterns that fit
Many stuck points exemplify two or three patterns. That's fine — clusters are informative.
4
Look for the dominant pattern
Across several stuck points, one or two patterns usually dominate. That's the habit to target, not just the individual beliefs.
5
Bridge to the Challenging Beliefs Worksheet
Patterns identified here feed directly into the A–G integrative worksheet that closes the protocol.

Frequently asked questions

What are the seven CPT patterns of problematic thinking?+

Jumping to conclusions, exaggerating or minimizing, disregarding important aspects, oversimplifying, overgeneralizing, mind reading, and emotional reasoning. CPT uses these seven (rather than the longer Burns list of 10–15) because they map cleanly onto trauma-related stuck points.

How is this different from cognitive distortions in CBT?+

The categories overlap heavily — overgeneralizing, mind reading, and emotional reasoning appear in both. The CPT list is tighter and tuned specifically for trauma-related beliefs, and it's used to find patterns across multiple stuck points rather than as a one-off recognition exercise.

What if a client's stuck point doesn't fit any pattern?+

Rare, but it happens. Usually it means the stuck point is more factual than evaluative — and may not be a stuck point at all. Revisit and refine the belief statement before retiring it from the list.

Where does this fit in the 12-session CPT protocol?+

Session 7 in the standard protocol, between Challenging Questions Worksheets (sessions 5–6) and the Challenging Beliefs Worksheet (sessions 8–12).

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Worksheet — Patterns of Problematic Thinking — provided by TherapistAssist for clinical use. Not a substitute for assessment or treatment.