Overcome Negative Thinking
Humans are always thinking, and these thoughts can be either beneficial or detrimental. It is crucial to learn how to combat negative thinking and develop greater resilience when issues arise. You have two options after your mind becomes aware of your unpleasant feelings: reject the negative thoughts or give in to them. Carl Jung, a psychologist, said that while opposing negative thoughts only gives them greater force, accepting them allows us to disarm them: "What you resist persists and will only get bigger." Not every thought that occurs in our brains is correct, precise, efficient, or slow. Though they may seem true, automatic thoughts are not necessarily true. Do not always rely on your thoughts for correctness as they are not always factual. According to research, thoughts have an impact on feelings, and different thinking biases might result in various emotional issues. It is possible to reduce negative thinking and become a more positive and resilient individual, you must take actions and want to change.
One approach to overcome negative thinking
Put your ideas and feelings down on paper. The moment you become aware of negative thoughts such as "I am not good enough" or "I am going to do terrible," act upon them. Put your ideas down as quickly as you can to reduce the likelihood that you'll forget or ignore them. Additionally write down the time, location, who you were with, and what was happening before you noticed a change in how you were feeling.
Note your feelings. Give a brief description of the feelings and physical experiences you were experiencing. Measure this in terms of intensity from 1 to 100%.
Determine the thought. Decide the idea you want to focus on, then put it in writing. Focus on just one idea at a time.
Examine alternative viewpoints. Step back from the idea mentally and try to see things from other angles.
Reflect. How do you feel now, in comparison to how you felt when you initially composed the thought? What aspects of attempting to observe the issue from many angles caught your attention during this process?
- Written by Jillian Falvo, undergraduate intern