I’m fascinated by how so few people with whom I’ve spoken throughout the years apparently don’t know much about dashboard warning lights, or vehicle warning indicators, regarding their own automobiles. For context, one source states of these indicators:
They light every time you start your vehicle, illuminated briefly as your car or truck warms up and makes sure all systems are safe and ready to go. Occasionally one light might stay on, indicating there’s a problem. Be equally alert if one or more warning lights don’t briefly illuminate. If they aren’t functioning, you might not be able to detect a problem they’d warn you about.
Are you familiar with your own indicators? How about those pertaining to the vehicle that is your body? When using psychoeducation with clients, I invite people to consider their vehicle warning indicators as clients practice Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT).
REBT theory uses the ABC model to illustrate how when Activating events (“Actions”) occur and people maintain irrational Beliefs about the events, these unhelpful assumptions – and not the actual occurrences – are what create unpleasant cognitive, emotive, bodily sensation, and behavioral Consequences.
Noteworthy and psycho-educationally speaking, colloquial use of the word “feelings” serves as a misnomer. Feelings relate either to emotions (i.e., joy, fear, anger, sorrow, disgust, surprise, etc.) or bodily sensations (e.g., tightness in one’s shoulders).
Where bodily vehicle warning indicators are concerned, I liken one’s physiological sensory experience to that of dashboard warning lights. Although you may not initially be aware of what emotion you’re feeling, you may be able to feel a bodily sensation when experiencing a consequence of an unhelpful belief.
In particular, there are four predominate irrational beliefs which people use: demandingness, awfulizing, low frustration tolerance, and global evaluations. Addressing these, the ABC model incorporates Disputation of unhelpful assumptions in order to explore Effective new beliefs.
From a psychological standpoint, people disturb themselves using a Belief-Consequence (B-C) connection. This is what causes indicator issues. Of course, this isn’t to suggest that in the context of the naturalistic or physical world there is no Action-Consequence (A-C) connection.
As an example, if you drive over a sharp object in the road and your tire is punctured (Action), your tire pressure monitoring system light may indicate a deflating tire (Consequence). From an A-C perspective, sharp objects may puncture tires and cause tire deflation.
Nevertheless, if you observe that your tire is deflating (Action) and you unhelpfully Believe, “This shouldn’t happen to me, because it’s an awful situation,” you’ll likely disturb yourself into a sorrowful disposition (Consequence). What unpleasant consequences might you then experience?
From a B-C perspective, when your unproductive narrative about how the world should function is violated, you may feel as though your body is heavier. When you unhelpfully convince yourself that the event it awful, you may feel as though someone punched you in the gut.
When practicing REBT with clients I help people to stop upsetting themselves through use of B-C connections, though I can’t fully resolve their A-C connections. Thus, I can help identify your metaphorical vehicle warning indicators, yet I can’t clear foreign debris from the roads upon which you travel.
In a 2022 blogpost entitled Repost: Revisiting Protective Measures, which was originally posted in regard to people experiencing unpleasant consequences of irrational beliefs concerning Mockingbird media content related to COVID-19 (March 20, 2020), I stated:
Aside from an emotional response to media content, people may also experience the consequence (C) of uncomfortable bodily sensations. I liken the check engine light on a vehicle to the response received by the body—a type of warning sign that needs to be addressed. If ignored for too long, metaphorical engine damage may result (e.g., a heart attack or stroke).
Back in 2020, I thought I’d created the vehicle warning indicator metaphor and I used this helpful tool with many clients. However, as is the case with countless ideas I’ve thought were self-originated, I was wrong.
Recently, a client invited me to read This Naked Mind: Control Alcohol, Find Freedom, Discover Happiness & Change Your Life (2015). Having completed reading it moments ago, I was surprised to discover what the author stated about the influence of alcohol:
If you are struggling with depression or anxiety, you may begin to wonder if a drink would take the edge off and provide relief. Remember, drinking is like turning off your check engine light. It may temporarily numb your symptoms, but it can never heal you.
The author was spot-on in her assessment of the metaphorical vehicle warning indicator. Various substances – some legal and others illegal – are often used to override the important dashboard warning lights of the body.
Has the tire pressure monitoring system been activated in association with pain in your foot? Maybe you’ve taken a painkiller to treat the symptom of pain rather than addressing the issue that caused the symptom.
Did your oil pressure light activate after you’d gone all day without eating? Perhaps instead of relying on nutrition to address the issue you instead turned toward nicotine products to suppress your appetite.
Your coolant temperature light suddenly turns on, indicating you’re overheating during an episode of rage. Instead of disputing the irrational beliefs which cause this consequence, you rely on alcohol to treat the reaction to an assumption and this provides only temporary relief.
Has your battery warning light ever come on, as you’ve deprived yourself of sleep? Rather than helpfully setting aside whatever it is you’ve deemed so important in the moment and going to bed, did you pound caffeine products to further rob yourself of much needed sleep?
How about the dreaded check engine light? Have you ever experienced sharp pains in your chest, indicating potential heart failure during a particularly stressful activating event? Did you by chance consume cannabis products at that time, rather than practicing unconditional acceptance?
This helpful REBT practice is designed to relieve suffering and is accomplished through use of unconditional self-acceptance, unconditional other-acceptance, and unconditional life-acceptance. Don’t get me wrong, the current blogpost isn’t part of an anti-substance campaign.
Contrarily, I’m advocating use of helpful techniques which value the tool of warning indicators. Both the ABC model and unconditional acceptance are used in acknowledgement of vehicle warning indicators, rather than numbing symptoms of distress caused by unhelpful beliefs.
Still, I find that so few people with whom I’ve spoken throughout the years apparently don’t know much about dashboard warning lights, or vehicle warning indicators, regarding their own bodies. Once you practice getting in tune with your bodily sensations, you can then discover how to address them in a healthy manner.
If you choose to numb the symptoms of a much larger problem, perhaps consuming substances as a quick fix to the issue, I invite you to consider whether or not that strategy serves your long-term interests and goals. Ignoring your vehicle warning indicators may not be wise in the long run.
Perhaps you’re tired of your warning lights illuminating as you ignore problems. Are you ready to do something about these matters? I help people to discover what their dashboard warning lights mean and address the actual causes of problems, rather than ignoring or numbing the body’s natural alert system.
If you’re looking for a provider who works to help you understand how thinking impacts physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral elements of your life—helping you to sharpen your critical thinking skills, I invite you to reach out today by using the contact widget on my website.
As a psychotherapist, I’m pleased to help people with an assortment of issues ranging from anger (hostility, rage, and aggression) to relational issues, adjustment matters, trauma experience, justice involvement, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety and depression, and other mood or personality-related matters.
At Hollings Therapy, LLC, serving all of Texas, I aim to treat clients with dignity and respect while offering a multi-lensed approach to the practice of psychotherapy and life coaching. My mission includes: Prioritizing the cognitive and emotive needs of clients, an overall reduction in client suffering, and supporting sustainable growth for the clients I serve. Rather than simply helping you to feel better, I want to help you get better!
Deric Hollings, LPC, LCSW
References:
Freepik. (n.d.). Close up on fuel level gauge in vehicle [Image]. Retrieved from https://www.freepik.com/free-photo/close-up-fuel-level-gauge-vehicle_94965607.htm#fromView=search&page=1&position=6&uuid=3ade96d7-90c2-4f50-bc11-91f01329e770
Grace, A. (2015). This naked mind: Control alcohol, find freedom, discover happiness & change your life. Avery. Retrieved from https://www.pdfdrive.com/this-naked-mind-control-alcohol-d183824936.html
Hollings, D. (2024, August 7). Awfulizing. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/awfulizing
Hollings, D. (2024, March 19). Consequences. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/consequences
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Hollings, D. (2024, April 22). On disputing. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/on-disputing
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Hollings, D. (2024, January 1). Psychoeducation. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/psychoeducation
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Hollings, D. (2022, August 24). Repost: Revisiting protective measures. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/repost-revisiting-protective-measures
Hollings, D. (2022, November 1). Self-disturbance. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/self-disturbance
Hollings, D. (2024, April 21). Sensation. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/sensation
Hollings, D. (2022, October 7). Should, must, and ought. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/should-must-and-ought
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Hollings, D. (2023, September 6). The absence of suffering. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/the-absence-of-suffering
Hollings, D. (2022, December 23). The A-C connection. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/the-a-c-connection
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Hollings, D. (2022, July 11). Unconditional acceptance. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/unconditional-acceptance
Hollings, D. (2023, March 11). Unconditional life-acceptance. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/unconditional-life-acceptance
Hollings, D. (2023, February 25). Unconditional other-acceptance. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/unconditional-other-acceptance
Hollings, D. (2023, March 1). Unconditional self-acceptance. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/unconditional-self-acceptance
Kurczewski, N. (2021, March 20). Dashboard warning lights explained. Car and Driver. Retrieved from https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a35865614/dashboard-warning-lights-explained/
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