This means to assume that one’s emotions are a reflection of reality; that feelings are evidence of a truth, when they can actually be evidence of a distortion. For example:
I feel unlovable, so I AM unlovable.
So there is the feeling, and then the focus, or finding the reasons why, what is wrong, why people might not like you or choose to stay away. This is rather than critically look for opposite evidence, people with similar perceived flaws who have intimacy in their lives or memories of times of actually being loved.
I feel unwanted after being rejected on a dating app, so I will always be alone.
To express this with logical operators:
IF (I feel rejected AFTER NOT getting a match on a dating app) THEN (it means I’ll always be alone)
In this premise:
“I feel rejected” is the antecedent
“NOT getting a match on a dating app” is the condition that triggers the feeling of rejection
The consequent is “it means I’ll always be alone”
The logical operators are:
IF…THEN: Indicates that the consequent follows from the antecedent and condition
AND: Connects the feeling of rejection with the condition of not getting a match
But the feeling of being unwanted is a temporary feeling based on a single event, it’s also a fortune telling error to say the feeling will translate into anything that happens in the future.