Buddhist's have had similar ideas/thoughts. Buddhism is ~2.5k years old.
"The Work" technique assumes that feelings (such as sadness, anger, and pain) emerge from an attachment to a stressful thought, which leads to behavior. This means that thought precedes feelings and behavior, and should be focused on as the primal cause of stress and suffering"
Anyone here familiar with buddhist meditation ? Vipassana specifically ? Isn't that what they talk about ?