by Ennio Ammendola, M.A.
This blog is going to be super unusual for you because instead of promoting REBT, I am going to focus on quitting REBT. Please stay with me and be a part of my experience. Only then can you fully understand the message I am trying to convey. I approached REBT 12 years ago, and throughout the years, I established a specialization, helped clients, and applied REBT’s principles to my own life.I clearly and unconditionally state that I BELIEVE IN THE PRINCIPLES OF REBT, but last week I decided to run a week long experiment…
I decided to quit REBT and go back to my old irrational/dysfunctional/unhelpful thoughts. Here’s what happened:
MONDAY: My left brake light did not work and I felt entitled to say, “This is horrible. They are going to give me a ticket if they stop me! Life shouldn’t be so hard on me!”
TUESDAY: I went to buy the big Nutella jar for the purposes of eating it regularly, every day. “I MUST have all the Nutella I want because I deserve it!”
WEDNESDAY: I was going to the Institute for my externship and I said, “I cannot stand taking the train to get there. I CANNOT tolerate this anymore!”
THURSDAY: I had to work on a school assignment and I stated, “I am going to do it tomorrow because I want to watch movies instead. I MUST have immediate pleasure. I do not care abouttomorrow!”
FRIDAY: I was trying to buy a book online and I had problems with the payment. I then stated, “This is so UNFAIR! I shouldn’t struggle so much to buy something!”
SATURDAY: I received a speeding ticket and stated, “This is a joke. I CANNOT stand this! I must have a better life and not struggle with this!”
SUNDAY: I went to work without taking my espresso thermos with me and I stated, “This is horrible. How can I stay all day long without espresso? I was so stupid to leave it home. I never do anything well in life!”
WOW, at the end of my experiment, I analyzed what happened and I achieved the following results: I didn’t change my left brake light, I am still overdosing on Nutella, I went to the Institute feeling miserable, I didn’t complete my school assignment yet, I didn’t buy the book, I didn’t pay for the speeding ticket yet, and I still consider myself stupid for leaving the espresso at home!
Let’s go back to the original question: “Is it worth quitting REBT?”
I don’t think so. I have been so unproductive, tense, angry, anxious, agitated, depressed at times, pissed off with world, and gaining pounds because of the Nutella overdose.
Finally, REBT helps (or at least has helped me) and sometimes it is important to focus on how it helps us. The best way to find out how it helps you is to ask yourself: “May I quit REBT for good?”
Run the same experiment and figure out what happens to you…
May the Nutella (rational portions) be with us!
