{"id":486,"date":"2022-12-13T23:14:44","date_gmt":"2022-12-13T19:44:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zahramansoori.com\/blog\/?p=486"},"modified":"2022-12-13T23:14:45","modified_gmt":"2022-12-13T19:44:45","slug":"4-ways-to-stop-negative-thinking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/zahramansoori.com\/blog\/2022\/12\/13\/4-ways-to-stop-negative-thinking\/","title":{"rendered":"4 Ways to Stop Negative Thinking"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cHumans, and our brains, have evolved such that we are capable of language, something no other mammals have,\u201d explains McLean\u2019s\u00a0Lisa W. Coyne, PhD<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur ability to speak, think abstractly, and reason gives us the ability to plan, problem solve, collaborate in groups, and learn indirectly, in the absence of our direct experience. For example, you might have learned not to touch a hot stove because your parents told you \u2018Don\u2019t touch, it\u2019s hot!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moreover, Coyne states, \u201cEveryone has a mind that \u2018talks\u2019 to them. We think of this as our verbal mind or our \u2018advisor.\u2019 It\u2019s the part of you that is linked to your languaging brain, whose function is to serve as your threat detector.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having a threat detector or \u201ccritical voice\u201d is a good thing. \u201cIt points out all the stuff that could be dangerous to us, including stuff that might happen in the future and all of our missteps from the past,\u201d says Coyne.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIts function is to help us to avoid making the same mistakes so that we are physically and existentially safe,\u201d she adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How We Experience Our Critical Voice<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

People \u201cdo not hear voices, per se,\u201d Coyne explains. \u201cBut we do notice critical thoughts popping up as we go through our days.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She shares that \u201cwe have evolved to experience our thoughts as literal truths. It\u2019s what allows us to learn indirectly by listening to what other people say, rather than only directly through our own experience.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our inner voice, Coyne states, \u201cis always on, and it\u2019s overinclusive in its estimation of what is threatening.\u201d These are \u201cfeatures, not bugs\u201d of our critical voice, she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt wouldn\u2019t be a great threat detector if you could turn it off at will, and it wouldn\u2019t be a great threat detector if it somehow underestimated threats, right?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Getting Stuck<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Our nonstop, always cautious critical voice, Coyne says, is \u201can incredible ability, a boon to our survival, but also comes with a dark side.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPeople run into trouble when they get stuck listening to their mind solely, rather than being out in the world and noticing that sometimes the mind isn\u2019t correct about what it thinks,\u201d Coyne states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The critical voice, she says, can cause people to \u201cfocus solely on avoiding unwanted thoughts and to avoid situations that trigger those thoughts.\u201d This is defined as \u201cexperiential avoidance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf it\u2019s our default for managing unwanted thoughts, it can trap us, such that we lose our focus on other, more important things in our lives,\u201d says Coyne.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe problem? Not only does this focus on getting stuff out of our heads capture our attention, but it also often backfires\u2014sometimes the more you try not to think about something, the more it sticks around.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Coyne offers a real-world example of how this works: \u201cMy mind may say something like \u2018Better not speak up in that meeting, people will think you are stupid, and that would be embarrassing.\u2019 I might experience a physical reaction (my heart rate might increase). Or an emotional reaction (I\u2019ll feel nervous),\u201d she shares.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAnd, of course, I\u2019d have a cognitive reaction (should I not speak up? What\u2019s the right thing to say so I don\u2019t look stupid?). This is important because we also treat unpleasant or unwanted thoughts\u2014even though they are just thoughts\u2014as actual truths that we must avoid, or fix, or suppress, or change.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Detaching From That Critical Voice<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHaving a critical, threat-detecting mind isn\u2019t the problem,\u201d Coyne asserts. \u201cRather, it\u2019s our response to that critical mind that can trap us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To avoid these, Coyne reports that some people engage with mental health professionals by using cognitive behavior therapy (CBT). \u201cThis approach will teach you skills for how to manage these types of thoughts by helping you undermine their faulty logic or overestimation of threat.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Approaches like acceptance and commitment therapy<\/a> (ACT) or acceptance-based behavior therapy can also be helpful. These methods, Coyne says, \u201chelp you change your relationship to your thoughts, such that you become more skilled at noticing them mindfully and making a space for them without reacting so that you are no longer hooked by them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In essence, you might notice your critical mind chattering away at you, but it will no longer take up central importance it once did and leave you free to choose what direction to take in your life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Simple Steps to Stop Negative Thoughts<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

While some may need to seek help from professionals, Coyne said there are \u201csimple steps that folks might practice, helping them detach from that critical voice and build more joy and vitality and connection in their lives.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Pause a Moment<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

If you are feeling stressed, anxious, or stuck in negative thinking patterns, PAUSE. Focus your awareness on the world around you with your five senses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Notice the Difference<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

NOTICE the difference between being stuck in your thoughts vs. experiencing the present moment through your five senses. Notice also what you have been up to in your mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Were you arguing with yourself? Struggling with disproving negative or critical self-evaluations? Trying to push unpleasant thoughts or images out of your head?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ask yourself whether this mental struggle is serving you well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Label Your Thoughts<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

If it isn\u2019t, see if you can step back and LABEL your thoughts as they are, rather than literal truths. For example, you might practice slowing down your thoughts and adding to them the stem \u201cI am having the thought that \u2026.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Continue this practice of labeling, without attempting to soften, change, or avoid whatever thoughts you happen to be having. See if you can notice what it is like to have some distance between you\u2014the thinker\u2014and your thoughts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Choose Your Intention<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Once you have PAUSED from your mental struggle, NOTICED what\u2019s happening and how it\u2019s been working, and LABELED your thoughts for what they are\u2014simple, mental weather that will come and go\u2014you are better able to CHOOSE your intention, and the next right step for you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are you going to continue to struggle with your thoughts? Or you can choose to take a small step toward something that matters to you in your life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

December 3, 2022<\/p>\n\n\n\n

References:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.mcleanhospital.org\/essential\/negative-thinking<\/a><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cHumans, and our brains, have evolved such that we are capable of language, something no other mammals have,\u201d explains McLean\u2019s\u00a0Lisa W. Coyne, PhD. \u201cOur ability to speak, think abstractly, and reason gives us the ability to plan, problem solve, collaborate in groups, and learn indirectly, in the absence of our direct experience. For example, you […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":487,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[41],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-486","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blogging"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/zahramansoori.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/486"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/zahramansoori.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/zahramansoori.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zahramansoori.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zahramansoori.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=486"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/zahramansoori.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/486\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":488,"href":"http:\/\/zahramansoori.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/486\/revisions\/488"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zahramansoori.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/487"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/zahramansoori.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=486"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zahramansoori.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=486"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zahramansoori.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=486"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}