I Don’t Think That I Can Take All That
On his eleventh solo studio album, Deeply Rooted (2015), lyricist Scarface (of Geto Boys fame) released the song “You”, that featured vocals by lyricist and singer CeeLo (of Goodie Mob fame), and which was coproduced by N.O. Joe and EP. On his first verse, Scarface states:
I been there, done that, grew from my fuck-ups
A hard head make a nigga soft ass tougher
My momma used to say that one day I’d suffer
If I ain’t tighten up and get my shit right, trust her
I’m seventeen out here, living the life
And I ain’t never coming back home, you giving advice
To hang on the corners, running from the policemen
If I knew then what I know right now, I would have sat my stupid ass back down
I wouldn’t listen!
‘Cause what she told me in the end came true
What you do to me, your kids gon’ do, times two
Forgive me, momma, I ain’t mean no harm
But, let her tell it, I ain’t seen no storm. It’s just beginning!
But, in a minute, I’ll be waving the flag, ‘cause I don’t think that I can take all that
Regarding the lyricist’s insightful verse, a psychoeducational lesson on Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) now comes to mind. Even if you don’t appreciate hip hop music, I invite you to concentrate on the line “I don’t think that I can take all that.”
REBT uses the ABC model to illustrate that when an undesirable Action occurs and you Believe an unhelpful narrative about the event, it’s your unfavorable assumption, not the occurrence itself, that causes an unpleasant Consequence. This is known as distress or disturbance.
In particular, there are four predominate irrational beliefs which people often use to distress or disturb themselves: global evaluations, low frustration tolerance (LFT), awfulizing, and demandingness. When contemplating these unproductive scripts, think of the acronym GLAD.
The line “I don’t think that I can take all that” is an example of an LFT narrative. Specifically, it’s an expression of intolerance. LFT scripts include “I can’t take it,” “I can’t bear it,” “this is insufferable,” “I can’t handle this,” and so forth. Now, consider the following example:
Hypothetically, Scarface’s children behave as he once did (Action), he Believes, “This is bad [G], as I don’t think that I can take all that [L], because it’s awful [A], and things shouldn’t be this way [D],” and he then experiences negative, but unhealthy fear (Consequence).
Addressing how people upset themselves with unhelpful attitudes, the ABC model incorporates Disputation of unproductive philosophies of life in order to explore Effective new beliefs. Whereas rigid beliefs cause self-disturbance, flexible beliefs result in an un-disturbed condition.
While global evaluations, awfulizing, and demandingness are challenging enough, LFT scripts create a self-narrative of intolerance. It’s as though one who uses this narrative genuinely believes that an undesirable event is literally intolerable.
Therefore, I invite you to consider your use of LFT narratives. More importantly, I encourage you to use high frustration tolerance (HFT) beliefs (e.g., I can take it). Do you believe that you can bear doing so, can consider it sufferable, can handle it, and so forth?
If you’re looking for a provider who tries to work to help 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 the world’s foremost hip hop-influenced REBT psychotherapist, I’m pleased to try to help people with an assortment of issues 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 trying to help you to feel better, I want to try to help you get better!
Deric Hollings, LPC, LCSW
Photo credit, Designed by Magnific, fair use
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