Stop negative thoughts: Strategies for a positive mindset

Positive thinking is helpful in many situations in life: you are more satisfied with your life, have an easier time at work and are more likely to find a partner. Nevertheless, many people have the problem of struggling with fears, doubts and worries. In this article we will tell you how negative thoughts arise, what effects they have on your entire life and how you can get off the thought carousel.

How negative thoughts arise

A distinction is made between good thoughts, which are usually associated with beautiful memories - such as thoughts of your last vacation or your own wedding celebration - and negative thoughts. A lack of self-confidence, fears and worries cause such bad thoughts. The soul can be severely affected by disappointments - for example if the hoped-for success in flirting repeatedly fails to materialize -, illnesses, grief or traumatic events. Other causes of negative thoughts include:

• Self-blame
• The lack of ability to forgive
• Jealousy, resentment and envy
• Bullying, backbiting and insults from other people

Anyone who has had such experiences finds it difficult to switch off their negative thoughts and look more positively into the future.

Negative thoughts affect your entire life

It is important to leave negative thoughts behind and go through life more positively. Because thoughts influence every aspect of everyday life. Your happiness, your inner satisfaction, your friendships, your partnership, your professional success and your health are significantly linked to your inner attitude.

This has even been scientifically proven: there are parts of the human brain that are only used to interpret reality. The sensory organs pass information on to the brain, where it is filtered and put into a mental context. Only then do they gain meaning for us. The meaning we assign to the information determines the emotion with which we react.

In plain language, this means: We perceive something, interpret it unconsciously, which gives it meaning to us. This creates an emotion that motivates us to carry out an action or make a decision. And so a concrete event ultimately occurs. In this way, our thoughts can ultimately influence and control our entire life.

Get out of the thought carousel: Strategies against negative thoughts

Now that you know how negative thoughts arise and the impact they have on your entire life, it's time to do something about it. The following five tips and strategies can help you break out of the negative thoughts carousel.

1. Write negative thoughts from your soul

Do you know the saying “get something off your chest”? This is exactly what can help you let go of negative thoughts. Take a blank piece of paper and write down everything that's on your mind: your fears, problems and worries. Also think about how you could solve your needs.

You can get used to this procedure as a daily ritual. You will soon notice how healing it is to simply write down everything negative and that it helps to let your worries go.

2. Meditate for a positive mindset

Meditation is a good way to become more aware of your own thoughts and reduce negative thoughts. Anyone can meditate. Different variants are possible: You can say a word out loud over and over again in your mind and thus focus entirely on it. Words like “peace” or the classic “Ohm” are suitable for this. Alternatively, it is possible to concentrate on your own breathing rhythm.

During meditation, you return again and again to your words or your breathing to let the negative thoughts go - but without repressing or suppressing them. If you want to learn meditation properly, you will find valuable tips for beginners here.

3. Use CBD oil for support

It can be helpful to use cannabidiol (CBD). It has a relaxing effect and can therefore help to relieve tension, fears and worries. CBD oil is also often helpful if you have trouble falling asleep. Doctors prescribe CBD preparations when patients complain of inner restlessness and negative thoughts.

If you want to try it yourself first, you can use over-the-counter CBD oil. high-quality CBD oil where bottles with different levels of cannabidiol are offered. It's best to start with a lower percentage of CBD and increase the dosage if necessary if you feel a relieving effect.

4. Exercise more

Sport helps you become more positive in everyday life and say goodbye to negative thoughts. There are mutliple reasons for this. On the one hand, the human brain depends on biochemical factors. The neurotransmitters dopamine and serotonin are important building blocks for inner satisfaction and positive thinking. Anyone who has too little of these messenger substances can suffer from mental illnesses such as burnout or depression.

Conversely, this also means that people with a lot of serotonin and dopamine in their blood are less likely to worry. Physical exercise is a good way to increase the levels of these two messenger substances. When you exercise, several stress-reducing messenger substances and hormones are released, so you automatically feel better. It's no wonder that many people go to the gym to clear their minds of negative thoughts.

In addition, exercise also helps you get in shape and feel comfortable in your own skin. This increases self-confidence and thus combats an important factor that promotes the development of negative thoughts.

5. Replace bad thoughts with good ones

Last but not least, it is important to consciously replace negative thoughts with positive ones. If your head is clear thanks to the strategies mentioned so far, it is now time to fill it with positive thoughts. To do this, consciously think about beautiful life situations, good events and things that you look forward to in the future. In this way, the bad thought patterns in the brain are exchanged for new connections.

At the same time, it's best to strengthen your self-confidence. Think about all the things you have done, that went well, and that you were successful at. Praise yourself for the good in your life and give yourself recognition so that your self-confidence grows little by little.