8 Ways to Handle Disturbing Thoughts
Do you tend to always think about the worst possibilities that will happen in the future? Or too often remember unpleasant things in the past? Or is your mind repeating bad words that people tell you? If the answers to those questions are “yes”, then probably you are now dealing with disturbing or negative thoughts.
Website reading.ac.uk cites a paper about brain activity published in the Journal of Neuroscience, stating that a fleeting negative stimulus received by a person’s brain may influence their long-term psychological well-being. If we think about disturbing thoughts continuously, it will hugely affect our productivity and well-being in the future.
By this article, we will help you to ease the negative thoughts to reach a more calm and enjoyable life. Here are the tips you can follow. Check this one out!
1. Manage Your Thoughts
Sometimes we blame ourselves too much whenever negative thoughts come. However, in an article provided by Weforum, a psychotherapist Tori Rodriguez explained “Unpleasant feelings are just as crucial as the enjoyable ones in helping you make sense of life’s ups and downs.”
Disturbing thoughts are not things you need to get rid of completely, but to be managed well. There are some ways to handle it:
1) embrace the thought;
2) breathe in-out, and
3) do a simple analysis of the causes of your worries.
To do those three ways, you need to be mentally aware and mature. After the awareness occurs, it will be much easier to do daily monitoring and analysis of your negative thoughts. Later, you can do the next step which is anticipation and relaxation.
2. Do A Simple Relaxation
Staying calm and relaxed will at least help disentangle the negative thoughts in our minds. Everyone may have a different way to stay calm and relaxed.
Activities that can be done for simple relaxation are for example by drinking warm tea. Healthline.com said that herbal tea has been proven to contain properties that can help reduce symptoms of stress, anxiety, and other mental health concerns. Or you can also go for a walk outside and see the natural scenery. Taken from Taking Charge of Your Health & Wellbeing’s website, natural elements like trees, plants, lakes, etc, contribute to making us emotionally better.
Whatever relaxation activities are, make sure you enjoy doing them. Because a calm mind will have a positive influence on your mental and physical condition.
3. Stop Pushing Yourself Too Hard
In this era, many people feel they are required to be better and perfect. Especially when there are moments where we compare ourselves with others. This demand can sometimes be painful and hard. This is also the seed of negative thoughts that will arise in the future.
So, what you have to do is understand your limits, be grateful, and stop comparing yourself to other people’s achievements. Stop pushing yourself to do something just to pursue other people’s acceptance or false happiness. Embrace, accept and love yourself for who you are. This mindset will definitely lead you to a more composed and content life.
4. Take A Social Media Break
In social media, it is also difficult for us to filter the information we receive. Not all contents are for us. Some of them can be bad news, fake news, or something that is triggering. This kind of content can burden our minds.
Taking a break from social media can be the right solution in this fast-paced digital era. No need to be afraid to miss the news for the sake of your mental health. Take a pause and enjoy direct interaction with the people around you. You can also replace screen-time by doing a fun outdoor hobby.
5. Flipping Your Negative Thoughts into Positive Ones
In psychology, there is a term called “flipping-thoughts”. Wellandgood.com stated the thought-flipping technique is about grounding yourself with reality and evidence. Your mind will then realize that reality is not as bad as we think. Then our mind will flip negative thoughts to positive ones.
To do this technique, it takes awareness of the emergence of negative thoughts. Also, you need to think about the best possibilities among the worst ones, not the other way around! “Flipping-thoughts” will help you to have a more positive mindset and strength in managing the anxiety that arises due to something that has not certainly happened.
6. Start Exercising
Disturbing thoughts often come up when we are alone and passively doing physical activities. So actively moving, one of which through exercising can be the solution to divert our minds.
Exercise has also been proven to increase endorphins which function to relieve stress, reduce pain, and boost positive energy. If you are not used to exercising, do it with simple physical activities such as jogging, morning walks, 10-minute yoga, pilates, and many more.
7. Learn Meditating
Meditation is now widely practiced because it has been shown to give benefits for relaxation and stress-handling. Routinely meditating will also calm your mind, balance your thoughts and feelings, and give a sense of security to the heart and mind.
To get the maximum benefit of meditation, we need to practice meditation skills. These meditation skills include sitting posture, breathing techniques, ways to relax, and others. For beginners, it is recommended to meditate 5-15 minutes per day first, after mastering the correct technique you can choose dedicated times to do it up to 30 minutes – 1 hour per day.
8. Surround Yourself with Positive People
Disturbing thoughts can occur from the influence of the people around you. The circle of friends and environment greatly determine the direction of our lives. Make sure you make friends with people who give positive perspectives on yourself and support the good things you’re doing.
Positive people can also be people who are the same-minded as you. You can find it through hobbies, interests, or things you like. Try to find out your hobby community and start making connections with them.
In addition, positive vibes from the surroundings can also be found in people who do many positive things in their life, as you will find on UPDEED platform. At UPDEED, you can be actively involved in a positive and supportive community. There are many motivational and inspirational stories that will support and encourage you. Being with these people will give a positive impact and help you to handle disturbing thoughts and situations in your life.
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