Negative Thinking…CoVid 19 …isn’t it time you took control over what you’re thinking? ... activate your positive thinking skills…part 168

One thing that definitely works is negative thinking. And it always works negatively. Negativity is not going to take you anywhere

Negative thinking is something we all engage in from time to time, but constant negativity can destroy your mental health, leaving you depressed and anxious.

Science shows that positive thinking can improve wellbeing, minimize stress and even lead to better cardiovascular health, yet many of us are stuck following patterns of negative thinking. Let’s explore the effects of negativity on health while looking at ways to end the cycle.

What Counts as Negative Thinking?

If you're someone who analyzes your thoughts, it can be challenging to differentiate negative thinking from the regular worries that everyone has. Feeling sad about an upsetting event is normal, just as worrying about financial burdens or relationship troubles is something we all do from time to time.

It’s when those feelings are repetitive and pervasive, however, that problems arise

Negative thinking refers to a pattern of thinking negatively about yourself and your surroundings.

While everyone experiences negative thoughts now and again, negative thinking that seriously affects the way you think about yourself and the world and even interferes with work/study and everyday functioning could be a symptom of a illness, including depression, anxiety disorders, personality disorders and schizophrenia.

Not everyone who engages in negative thinking has a illness, just like not everyone with a illness has constant negative thoughts.

However, negative thinking can be detrimental to your mental health and quality of life, particularly when you can’t stop. Luckily, there are ways to end negative thoughts, but you must first look at what causes them.

What Are the Causes of Negative Thinking?

Negative thinking has many different causes. Intrusive negative thoughts can be a symptom of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) or another mental health condition.

Negative thinking is also symptomatic of depression Negative thoughts can impact your life severely, however, so it’s best to get to the bottom of them, whatever the cause.

According to the Power of Positivity, there are three leading causes of negative thoughts.

Fear of the future: People often fear the unknown and are unsure what the future might bring. This often leads to "catastrophizing," which means always predicting failure and disaster. Whichever way you look at it, worrying about the future is a waste of time and energy. The key to letting go of these negative thoughts is to accept there is a limit to what you can change in the future and strive to focus on the present instead.

Anxiety about the present: Anxiety about the present is understandable. Many of us worry about what people think of us, whether we’re doing a good job at work and what the traffic will be like on the way home.

Negative thinkers often come up with the worst-case scenario: that no one in the office likes us, our boss is about to tell us we’ve done terrible work, and the traffic will make us late to pick up the kids. Again, this derives from fear of losing control. Organization and routine can help with banishing negative thoughts, but you may also need to try practical therapy techniques.

Shame about the past: Have you ever lain awake worrying about something you did last week, or even last year?

Everyone does and says things they feel embarrassed about, but negative thinkers tend to dwell on past mistakes and failures more than others. Of course, a more constructive way to approach mistakes is to accept that the event happened and consider how you could prevent it from happening again in the future.

How to Stop Negative Thinking Once and For All

You don’t have to succumb to a life of negative thinking. With some basic countering techniques, by intercepting them before they become all-consuming. The key is to practice countering exercises every time you have a negative thought, and not to give up if you have a blip.

With this in mind, here are five questions to ask yourself next time negative thoughts arise. You can do this exercise in your head or by writing down your answers in a journal.

Is the thought true? Is there a basis for this negative belief?

Is the thought giving you power, or is it taking your power away?

Can you put a positive spin on this thought or learn from it?

What would your life look like if you didn’t have these negative beliefs?

Is the thought glossing over an issue that needs addressing?

Remember that countering negative thoughts takes time and commitment. Often, people require ongoing help from a mental health professional to change their negative thinking patterns for good

Disclaimer: The information on this POST is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional advice. The opinions expressed within this article are the personal opinions of the author. All content, including text, graphics, images and information, contained on or available through this article is for general information purposes / educational purposes only, and to ensure discussion or debate. 

Thank you …Negative thinking is a thought process where people tend to find the worst in everything, or reduce their expectations by considering the worst possible scenarios.

This approach can allay disappointment in some situations; but, negative thinking tends to manifest into a pattern that can cause tremendous stress, worry, or sadness over time.

The opposite approach would be positive thinking, approaching situations or circumstances with a positive attitude.

It’s tricky to identify negative thinking patterns, because our thoughts feel so immediate and true. We have a habit of accepting them uncritically, without questioning.

Also, worrying about something bad that may happen can draw you in, making you feel like you’re doing something about the problem, even when you’re making things worse for yourself.

For some of us, overthinking can feel like a proxy for control. By keeping thoughts of the stressor in mind, we may feel like we can control what’s going to happen. In fact, many of life’s stressors are not controllable, so focusing too much on them just drains our mental and emotional energy and prolongs the body’s stress response.

Want to add word or two?

What to Do Instead: Pay attention to when your thinking starts to get repetitive or negative.

When you notice rumination, make yourself break the cycle.

Get up and do something else: Go for a walk or reach out to a friend (but don’t continue the rumination out loud by whining to them).

Don’t overeat or drink too much alcohol to avoid the negative thoughts.

Try to change your thinking to a problem-solving focus that is more deliberate and strategic.

Your comment ….? 

How you think about the events and people in your life can either help you reframe things in more positive ways that help you cope or take you down a rabbit hole of negative thinking and feeling bad about yourself, other people, and your prospects.

Unhealthy ways of thinking and reacting to things can cause depression and anxiety, prolong stressors, and create chronically stressed states of mind that can affect your heart health and immunity.

You can’t always control what you think, but you can learn to identify when you’re sinking into a negative pattern, and then reboot and redirect your thinking along a more constructive or hopeful path. 

If you keep redirecting your negative thinking over months and years, you may even change the patterns of neural connections in your brain so that you react to life’s events in more grounded ways, with less panic and judgment.

Although it’s natural and can be healthy to self-reflect, reflection becomes problematic when it’s negative, excessive, and repetitive.

Rumination is a kind of negative thinking in which we get mentally stuck and keep spinning our wheels without making progress, like a car stuck in a snowdrift.

Rumination can make you more and more anxious as you keep thinking of more and more negative outcomes that could possibly happen.