7 Strategies That Deactivate Negative Thoughts

It is easy to fall prey to a dynamic of negative thoughts, especially when we have accumulated several and have generated an inertia that especially affects the filters we use to process information. The thoughts of which we speak can be chained in the same way that a small snowball grows fat that we let roll downhill. Thus, a small and innocent thought, released without awareness or intention, can end up becoming a great colossus that contaminates all our emotions, behaviors and other thoughts.

Like the force of the ball that falls uncontrollably, getting bigger and faster, negative thoughts drain us of energy and take away our strength. And the more you indulge in those negative thoughts, the stronger they become. Moreover, in the same way that it is more difficult to stop that little snowball when it has already rolled several meters over the valley and has grown in size, so is stopping a ball of negative thoughts that has already started to roll.

What to do with negative thoughts?

Life presents us with challenges, many times without giving us a truce and without taking into account the resources we have. Having negative or defeatist thoughts in this scenario is normal. However,  feeding, holding or even chasing them lowers the quality of life and poisons the image we have of ourselves. What need do we have to attack our self-esteem in this way?

Negative thinking sometimes hurts and in many others it conditions our behaviors. It can make us act desperate when there is no need or even encourage the possibility of throwing in the towel when for resources and skills we would still have a lot to say. In short, negative thoughts tend to condition our decisions and not precisely for the better.

Know how to stop them in time

So  why do we feed negative thinking when we know it hurts us? The problem begins when the first negative thoughts jump out at us and we don’t treat them well. In short, when the ball is small and has not contaminated everything it touches. For example, there are people who deal with negative thoughts, or rather, anxiety that they produce by “robbing” the refrigerator. A strategy that tends to generate even more negative thoughts, in this case regarding our capacity for self-control and our body.

With these types of thoughts there is another curious phenomenon : even if you are aware that you have to forget that thought, it is very difficult to deactivate it. The more you think about forgetting it, the more present you have it. And there you stay, mulling over an idea that not only gives you a hard time, but can seriously compromise your mental health.

How to turn off negative thinking

So how do we eliminate this negative thinking? In reality, you can’t avoid negative thinking entirely. Sometimes negative thoughts are just a spark in our mind. When this happens, we must be aware, so that we can immediately recognize them and thus know when we are thinking negatively.

The following strategies will allow you to deactivate negative thinking and make it easier for you to think positively.

1.- Observe your thinking

Negative thoughts are generally the product of cognitive distortions, or irrational thinking patterns. Watch them as if you were a spectator. If you don’t let them take over your mind they will just dissipate. Visualize them as logs traveling downstream. Sooner or later you will lose sight of them. Accept your negative thoughts and let them go.

You can also think that they are like clouds. You observe them but you do not judge them, in this way, you do not get emotionally involved and you do not become physiologically active. You establish a distance between you and the thought and you realize that you are not your thought. For this, the mindfulness technique would be very beneficial.

2.- Reframe any question you are pondering

Ruminations are excessive thinking patterns. When we ruminate on an idea, we do it convinced that we can solve something just by thinking more about it. Something that, in general, is useless. You must clear what is true in your thoughts and discard what you have created in your mind before you start looking for a solution. Do not be surprised if after eliminating the fantasy you find that there is no problem, beyond the one you have created yourself.

For this, the ideal is to observe the thought without judging it. Why? By judging it we get involved, we give it a subjective value judgment. If we observe it without prejudice, we will see reality as it is. In this way, we will not go around the bush thinking one thing or another or making different movies in our mind that only lead us to states of sadness.

3.- Move and act physically on your thinking

When you find yourself caught up in a negative thought, get moving. Changing the chip to awaken positive thoughts is not so easy when your mind is busy looking for a way to suffer. It’s a great time to go for a walk, go for a run, dance, or practice yoga. Don’t stop to think – your mind is very busy – just let your body take over and take your mind elsewhere.

Exercising increases serotonin levels and reduces cortisol, meaning it increases happiness and reduces anxiety. So getting moving when negative thoughts invade us is a great idea that will undoubtedly bring us quite a few good results.

4.- Avoid negative thought triggers

A song, an image, a reading, what you see on television, the company of certain people … As soon as you discover what stimuli trigger your negative thoughts, avoid them. And, as far as you can, replace them with others that awaken pleasant sensations in you. Don’t beat yourself up or make it more difficult for yourself.

5.- Surround yourself with positive people and pleasant experiences

If what you see, what you hear and what you read is positive, if the people around you are positive, it will be easier to keep negative thinking away. Any negative thought triggers will be easier to defuse if optimism surrounds you. The stimuli that accompany us in our day to day are very important when it comes to creating a good atmosphere. So the best thing is to try to find what brings us well-being.

6.- Repeat positive affirmations where you previously thought negative

Negative thinking is usually a learned habit. So instead of being invaded by any habitual negative thoughts, get into the habit of thinking positively under those circumstances. To remember or reinforce it, you can keep it in mind, written on paper, on your clothes, on the wallpaper of your computer or mobile, or even on your own skin.

7.- Remember that nobody is perfect and move on

It’s easy to stop at your mistakes. But the only thing you can do is learn from them and move on. Nothing will change no matter how much you ruminate. And if what awakens your negative thoughts is a weakness or a limitation, focus on your strengths and your virtues. If you can’t change what’s out there, make the most of what you’ve got. We have the potential to learn from any situation no matter how adverse it may seem. So if we make a mistake, instead of whipping us, we better learn from it.

The thoughts won’t last forever

Negative thoughts are fleeting and temporary, unless we do otherwise. They have no real power of their own, but they can do a lot of damage if we give them a chance to grow. A thought has no other power than what you give it. Negative thoughts gain momentum when activated. Deactivating them later is a difficult task: it is no longer a thought, we are talking about a dynamic.

Each one is responsible for the way they manage their own thoughts. It does not matter why that thought arose: the important thing is that you can turn it off and that you can create a suitable environment for that time of thoughts to be reduced. The key is to detect those negative thoughts before they have time to entrench themselves in your head and win allies.