What Are Core Beliefs? How Therapy Helps You Change Them

Core beliefs are ingrained assumptions that we hold towards ourselves and the world around us. These core beliefs are usually unconscious, and sometimes we are not even aware of them or their presence in our lives. However, these beliefs have the power to drive our emotions and behaviors in ways we don’t even understand. These beliefs are also closely tied to a person’s self-worth and self-esteem. Therapy can be used to help change core beliefs that are negative or don’t serve us anymore. While changing core beliefs is typically challenging, it’s always worth it.

What Are Core Beliefs?

Core beliefs are thoughts that we have towards ourselves in the world and are typically created during childhood. Like we mentioned above, these beliefs are often not conscious, which can make them more difficult to change. An example of a negative core belief is “I am unlovable” or “I am not enough”. Core beliefs can influence our self-worth and self-esteem because they warp our perception in a way that is not always accurate.

How Therapy Helps Change Core Beliefs

Working with a therapist or teletherapist is a great way to work through reframing core beliefs. Therapists can be helpful guides for patients to explore their beliefs. Therapy can be a helpful tool to use in identifying core beliefs and ultimately reframing them.

The first step in changing core beliefs is awareness. Therapists can help their patients identify their core beliefs through exercises or talking about past experiences. Exploring what beliefs we have may take time because they are not always in our conscious awareness.
The second step in changing core beliefs is finding evidence to support and not support this belief. Therapists can also help their patients complete experiments where they alter their behavior to go against the core belief. This can create evidence for or against the belief.
The third step in changing core beliefs is creating new, alternative beliefs. These beliefs should be more realistic and compassionate. Reframing beliefs in therapy can be helpful because therapists can help their patients partake in cognitive restructuring.
The fourth and final step is integrating these new beliefs into all areas of life. This step is ongoing and may need to be adjusted depending on the person’s specific life situation. It’s important to remember that changing beliefs we have held our entire lives takes time.

Creating new core beliefs may seem like a daunting task. However, creating more compassionate and accurate beliefs is possible for anyone reading this. By creating positive core beliefs, we can improve our self-worth and, in turn, our emotional well-being.

If you (or someone you love) may benefit from working with us through therapy, we are here to help! Reach out to us today if you are ready to start your healing journey.

References

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/core-beliefs

https://www.goodtherapy.org/blog/how-core-beliefs-affect-mental-health/

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S000579672400192X

https://positivepsychology.com/false-beliefs/

https://positivepsychology.com/core-beliefs-worksheets/

Keywords: core beliefs, teletherapist, self-worth, self-esteem