The Black Cats may have won only four of their league 26 games to date, but they have lost just nine - only the top eight clubs have been defeated on fewer occasions - and Cattermole believes all that is missing is momentum.
Gus Poyet's men thought they had taken a significant step forward when they turned in one of their better performances of the season to beat Burnley 2-0 at the Stadium of Light on January 31 and then followed it up with a 1-1 draw at Swansea.
However, the three games since - a 2-0 defeat by QPR and a 0-0 draw with West Brom on Wearside either side of the humiliating FA Cup fifth round defeat at League One Bradford - have giving cause for concern.
But Cattermole said: "Let's not think that's just Sunderland, that's every club in the bottom half, they are all thinking the same
They get a win and then they might not win for a few games.
"But I think if you look at the season, we haven't been eight or nine games without a point or without a win and we have been really consistent throughout the year.
"We have had a couple of bad defeats when we thought we had cracked it - the Hull game and then QPR especially.
"They are the ones we maybe need to address on the back of our next win, not getting carried away, but approach the next game even more [determined] and even go and take a point and have a solid performance.
"After our wins, we have not really followed it up too well
We have got to look to finish the season strongly."
Sunderland currently sit in 16th place in the table on 25 points, three clear QPR, Burnley and Aston Villa and a further four better off than basement boys Leicester ahead of Saturday's trip to Manchester United.
Source : PA
Source: PA