Sanctum: A Focus on Irrationality

[DISCLAIMER]

When listening to an electronic dance music (EDM) DJ set by Aneya Rose, my face melted off as I heard her spin the track “Sanctum” (2024) by Belgian DJ and record producer Charlotte de Witte, featuring vocals by Marion di Napoli. No worries, my face molded back into shape.

The song reminds me of nights when raving in South America. For me, it drips with nostalgia and allows me to experience sanctum (a place where one is free from intrusion) within the inner workings of my often chaotic mind. Somehow, dark EDM with a fever pitch calms my thoughts.

Hearing the track, the inner sanctum of my mental processes settled to the point whereby I contemplated a psychoeducational lesson on Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT). This occurred once my face remolded from de Witte’s hard-hitting drums and tickling treble tones.

Specifically, I thought about how long it took me to un-disturb myself years ago—concluding that I was grateful for having eventually discovered REBT. Of course, the way I worded that last sentence may be confusing for those who remain unfamiliar with REBT. Allow me to explain.

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 self-disturbance.

In particular, there are four predominate irrational beliefs which people often use to upset themselves: global evaluations, low frustration tolerance, awfulizing, and demandingness. When contemplating these unproductive beliefs, think of the acronym GLAD (as indicated below).

Additionally, from a psychological standpoint, people disturb themselves using a Belief-Consequence (B-C) connection. 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.

For instance, when I danced the night away on December 31, 1999 on a beach and in clubs located at Copacabana in Rio de Janeiro, Brasil (Action), I became quite sweaty (Consequence). From an A-C standpoint, excessive cardiovascular activity can cause profuse sweating.

Now, suppose I looked back 26 years since that time and thought irrationally about my inability to relive the past. Here, there may be some utility in differentiating between thoughts and beliefs which are irrational or rational.

With my approach to care for mental, emotional, and behavioral health (collectively “mental health”), I invite people to consider scripts which are rational (in accordance with both logic and reason) – especially regarding events which correlate with strong feelings.

In REBT, wacky beliefs which cause unpleasant consequences are rigorously challenged. However, feelings (i.e., emotions and sensations) aren’t confronted. This is why it’s important to properly examine the logic and reason one uses. It’s what allows for improved mental health.

Noteworthy, “logic” is the interrelation or sequence of facts or events when seen as inevitable or predictable, and “reason” is a statement offered in explanation or justification. For instance, a modus ponens syllogism uses the following logical form: If p, then q; p; therefore, q.

As an example, if you understand how beliefs are constructed while using daily practice of the ABC model and unconditional acceptance techniques of REBT (p), then you’ll be less likely to self-disturb by use of irrational beliefs (q).

You understand how beliefs are constructed while using daily practice of the ABC model and unconditional acceptance techniques of REBT (p).

Therefore, you’ll be less likely to self-disturb by use of irrational beliefs (q).

With this comprehension, beliefs which some people perceive as rational are viewed by other individuals as irrational. To address this matter using my approach to wellness, I invite you to consider what one REBT source has to say about rational versus irrational beliefs (page 5):

B in the ABC framework stands for [B]eliefs. These are evaluative cognitions or constructed views of the world that can be either rigid or flexible. When clients’ beliefs are flexible, they are called rational beliefs.

Rational beliefs often take the form of desires, wishes, wants, and preferences (rather than dogmatic musts or shoulds). When clients adhere to such flexible premises, they will tend to draw rational conclusions from them.

Let’s now return to supposing that I looked back 26 years since my time in Rio and thought irrationally about my inability to relive the past (Action). While it may seem silly to consider that I’d use the following irrational self-narratives, people often use these self-disturbing scripts.

Imagine that I Believed, “Life sucks [G], and I can’t stand that I’m no longer in Rio [L], because it’s horrible that I can’t relive the past [A], as I should be able to once again experience the turn of a millennium [D]!” With this irrational outlook, I experience sadness (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.

Worth mentioning, the American Psychological Association defines irrationality as “the state, condition, or quality of lacking rational thought. The term is typically used in relation to cognitive behavior (e.g., thinking, decision making) that is illogical or delusional.”

From an REBT perspective, irrationality concerns thoughts and beliefs which are: 1) illogical and/or unreasonable, 2) inflexible, and 3) which cause self-disturbance. This sort of cognitive dysfunction is fundamentally common, as one REBT source helpfully clarifies (page 39):

If, as we have pointed out, it is self-defeating to hold irrational ideas, why do we do so? A number of factors come into play. First, common cultural stereotypes in our language, our stories, and our songs reinforce this tendency. A review of popular music, for example, found that 82% of country-western and rock songs expressed irrational philosophies (Protinsky and Popp, 1978).

Second, there may be a kind of self-reinforcing thrill achieved when we are irrational. Think of the boy who has tearful hysterics because he did not make the team, or the girl who was not invited to the dance. Distortion and exaggeration can be exciting and, of course, may elicit attention or sympathy from others in our environment. Another way of looking at it may be that people experience short-term advantages by thinking irrationally.

Once one thinks oneself to be worthless, one is legitimized to not put effort into achieving one’s goal(s) (Backx, 2012). Perhaps the most basic reason why people are irrational, however, is stated by Ellis (1976a), who suggested that almost everyone thinks irrationally some of the time; it is the human condition.

Strange as it may seem, this last explanation for irrationality may be clinically quite comforting. Such a suggestion appears to function well because it changes the attribution and allows clients to stop blaming themselves for their irrational beliefs.

When listening to “Sanctum”, after my face remolded from having been melted off by de Witte’s pulsating track, my inner sanctum was calm. Therein, I focused on a psychoeducational lesson regarding irrationality.

Just as the aforementioned REBT source expresses how it’s “comforting” to realize that “almost everyone thinks irrationally,” I’m comforted by my outlook regarding one’s ability to un-disturb when these illogical and/or unreasonable beliefs manifest. Now, I share this sanctum with you.

If you’re looking for a provider who tries to work to help you understand how thinking impacts physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral elements of your life, I invite you to reach out today by using the contact widget on my website.

As the world’s foremost EDM-influenced REBT psychotherapist—promoting content related to EDM, 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, fair use

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