April Fools
By Liz Holloway, M.A., LCMHCA
After a long day at work, I aim to practice self-care, something I preach to every client I see. This is often in the form of scrolling social media apps such as “Tik Tok” and spending an embarrassing amount of time watching strangers spread words of encouragement, activism, passion, and experience. As my thumb flicks through snippets of lives across the globe, I come face-to-face with my least favorite video- the prank. Growing up in the 90s and 2000s, prank shows were a common way the youth of America would unwind in front of their television. I was hoping the next generations would be immune to the humor that often ended in hurt feelings or hospital visits but Tik tok quickly reminds me that pranks are here to stay. Unlike the Johnny Knoxville I grew up with, Tik Tok mischief is seemingly less aggressive- parents telling children they ate all of their Halloween candy, people running under plastic wrap to blindside the person behind them, people collapsing to see how their dogs will react in a fake emergency.
As my mind begins to run through the pranks I’ve personally fallen victim to, I’m reminded of a bitter truth- April Fools Day is coming up.. I remain on edge all day because of my theatrical responses, think Nathan Lane in “The Birdcage”, that provide pranksters with the response they crave the most. I timidly check around corners and behind doors of empty rooms, accept every gesture of kindness with suspicion such as “what if this doughnut isn’t filled with delicious Bavarian cream but toothpaste?” On April 1st all I see is a big target on my back that signals to others I am free to tric, and I mentally prepare myself for the jump scare or prank that is inevitable. The irony of this tension is that I fall victim to tricks every day of the year; we all do. Instead of an outsider pranking us, as is tradition on the first of April, it is our minds that prank us every day. Inaccurate thoughts, or cognitive distortions, are thoughts that lead to negative thought patterns and emotional distress. Most of us experience these distortions daily and they can stem from a variety of reasons such as anxiety, insecurity, trauma, or more.
Some examples of common inaccurate thoughts:
Overgeneralization: drawing broad conclusions from isolated incidents (every donut from here on it will be filled with toothpaste)
Catastrophizing: assuming the worst-case scenario even when there is little evidence to support this outcome will happen (what if I’m allergic to toothpaste and that prank causes me to go to the hospital?)
Personalization: taking blame for things that are outside of your control (if I weren’t such a scaredy cat, people wouldn’t think it’s so fun to prank me)
Magnification: exaggerating the importance or severity or something (they put toothpaste in that donut to signal to me I have bad breath and nobody will ever talk to me again because I smell)
Unlike the lack of control we experience when others are tricking us, we can help combat the tricks our minds play on us. To decrease these distortions, first identify what inaccurate thoughts you are experiencing. Then, identify where these inaccurate thoughts are stemming from (a previous trauma, insecurity, etc.) Allow logic into the space; this is easier said than done with inaccurate thoughts. What are the odds that every donut will now be filled with toothpaste? Slim to none. Finally, replace the inaccurate thought with a pleasant one. Think back to all the times you enjoyed donuts, your favorite vacation you’ve ever taken, your favorite book or TV show. With identification, reflection, and replacement, you can end the daily tricks your mind is playing on you.
