Bad Thinking Diary -

The good news is that you are not stuck with this diary. You can shred it. The process is called Cognitive Restructuring, a core component of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). You don’t need a therapist to begin; you just need to challenge the author.

At its core, Bad Thinking Diary follows the tumultuous relationship between Yuna and the seemingly perfect heiress, Hong. On the surface, it fits the mold of a classic romance: the popular, confident partner and the quieter, more insecure love interest. However, the genius of the story lies in its namesake—the diary.

The protagonist doesn’t just record events; she records her worst interpretations of them. Every delayed text message, every unreadable glance, every whisper between colleagues is filtered through a lens of low self-worth. The "bad thinking" refers to the cognitive distortions we all suffer from: mind-reading (assuming we know what others think), catastrophizing (assuming the worst outcome), and disqualifying the positive (rejecting good news as a fluke).

What makes the diary so compelling is its unreliability. The reader realizes long before the protagonist does that the "evidence" she is collecting against her own happiness is fabricated by her trauma and fear.

The term "Bad Thinking Diary" describes the unconscious practice of recording only the negative data of your life while filtering out the positive. It is the diary your Anxiety writes, not the one your Authentic Self writes. Bad Thinking Diary

Unlike a traditional journal that aims for accurate emotional reflection, a Bad Thinking Diary is biased. It thrives on exaggeration and catastrophe. It takes a minor mistake—sending an email with a typo—and enters it into the diary as definitive proof of incompetence.

Common entries in a Bad Thinking Diary include:

If you are ready to start, here is a printable template you can copy into your notebook.

Date: _______________ Mood before writing: (1-10, 10=great) The good news is that you are not stuck with this diary

1. The Trigger: (What happened?)

2. The Bad Thought: (What went through your mind?)

3. The Distortion: (Circle all that apply) All-or-nothing / Overgeneralization / Filter / Discounting / Jumping to conclusions / Magnification / Emotional reasoning / Should statements / Labeling / Personalization

4. The Evidence Check:

5. The Balanced Thought: (What would you tell a friend in this exact situation?)

Mood after writing: (1-10)

You might wonder, "If I write down my bad thoughts, won't I just make them more real?" Surprisingly, research in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) suggests the opposite.