NEGATIVE THOUGHTS: A GUIDE

Let me preface this by saying you are probably never going to be completely clear of negative thoughts. Your goal shouldnt be to throw all your negative thoughts in the trash. In fact...your negative thoughts can be a a doorway to self awareness, but that is for another post. :wink:

This post is going to focus on forming a better relationship with your thoughts, becoming aware of your thoughts, and deciding when it is time to transform thoughts that are running on auto-pilot or arent in alignment with your highest good.

I know constant negative thoughts can be pain ful and, for lack of a better phrase, can ruin your life. I ask that you please try your best not to judge yourself for having negative thoughts. Everyone has them and you can re-wire your mind to focus on positive things more prominently. It is possible, but it will take time and dedication.

These tips I am giving you, ideally, should be practiced everyday or as often as possible to see results.

1. Journal.

I know that you hear it time and time again but journalling is just a great thing to do when it comes to self-development work.

Specifically, automatic writing. Just write your heart out. If you dont have a physical journal, type your heart out. Try your best not to judge yourself when you write. No matter how negative it is, just write it out. Do it without stopping for 5 minutes or so and you will see where your head is at.

This is especially great to do if you you know you are thinking negative thoughts and you feel like you can stop them. It will feel like purging something out of you.

2. Nobody knows what they are talking about.

If most of your negative thoughts come from people bullying you or your parents, this one is for you. I know the things people say to you can get stuck in your head and replay over and over again (trust me, Ive been there) but in my 23 years of being alive I have come to the conclusion that the people who actually have no problem say rude, inconsiderate, mean, unnecessary things to people are in fact miserable human beings.

I know, its hard to not believe them sometimes because people will say these things with such conviction but let me tell you this:

THEY DONT KNOW WHAT THE FUCK THEY ARE TALKING ABOUT. THEY MORE THAN LIKELY DONT KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT YOU OR WHAT IS GOING ON INSIDE YOUR HEAD. PEOPLE WHO SAY MEAN THINGS ARE MEAN TO THEMSELVES. EVEN IF THEY ARE YOUR PARENT, THEY ARE ONLY EVER PROJECTING WHAT THEY ARE FEELING ON THE INSIDE, THE THINGS THEY ARE SAYING TO YOU NEVER HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH YOU. ITS ABOUT THEM.

I dont know who needed to hear that but I felt compelled to add that in.

3. Questioning your thoughts

Literally just ask yourself questions about them.

• Is that true? Is this thought really the truth or did someone just tell me this?

• What can we do to change that?

• Does this thought have anything to do with what I am doing right now?

• Why am I thinking this way about myself?

•When was the first time I thought this?

You can make up your own questions and cater them to what the thought is. The point is to get a better understanding of the thoughts you are having.

Bringing awareness to those parts of your mind are integral to healing.

4. I want you to practice looking at your thoughts objectively.

This goes along with questioning your thoughts.

I want you to imagine pulling that thought out from your head an putting on the table. You can even get creative with this. What does that thought look, feel, even smell or taste like?

(This is a good journalling prompt by the way :wink: )

Maybe its red and it feels like fear. Maybe its blue, smells like your kitchen, and feels like pain. Whatever it is, take note of that.

What you make of the information is up to you and your own intuition, but one thing I can tell you is all of your thoughts are part of you that want to be loved. Let them know that you hear them, you acknowledge them, and sometimes thats enough for them to settle down.

Thank you much for reading my post even though it was very long-winded. I would like to write an “ultimate guide” or something eventually to really map out these subjects more clearly. I feel like I could go in-depth on a whole bunch of self-development subjects and I hope to be posting more soon.

Let me know if you have any questions or suggestions as to what I should write about next. I love hearing your !