In the previous section we began loking at a journal written by hary, an Alzheimer's family caregiver. The journal illustrated the connection between what we think and how our thoughts make us feel.

There's another very important point from Harry's journal. That is the fact that our thoughts trigger our emotions. When our thoughts are more sensible, we tend to have more moderate feelings. On the other hand, when our thoughts are more extreme we become more severely distressed and upset. And we lose focus and energy.

Don't believe it? Try this experiment. Take some sheets of paper, and begin to keep a journal of your thoughts. Use this outline:

Thinking/Feeling Diary

Each time you have an emotional flareup or a situation worth investigating, start by filling out the following:

"What am I feeling?" "What is going on?" "What are my thoughts?"

Each time you feel an especially positive emotion, write it in your journal. Then, write down what is going on around you-what actually happened? Then, write down all the thoughts, ideas, images, self-talk, and so on that you are having. Do not worry about making the journal look perfect, just note down as many of your thoughts as you can.

Now, each time you feel an especially negative emotion, do the same exercise. Track your thoughts. Before long, you can begin to notice for yourself the very close relationship there is between how you feel and what you think. You can become more aware of how the way you think influences the way you feel. This awareness can be an extremely powerful tool, as we shall see soon.

Here is an example from someone else