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• Reputation: 959 Q&A: 19 0 5 517 38 0 Classifieds: 0 0 what's this? Follow Following 0 Tom Sackett

  7 1 Positive thinking has both a good side, and a very dark side. The good side is that it provides a way for people who been through a lot of bad experiences to force themselves to see the good in the world, and in themselves, that they might otherwise miss. It can also temper the worst instincts of people who tend to expect the worst in people. Too many people are told that they aren't good enough, or capable enough, to achieve their goals. Positive thinking, as an approach to life, helps them get over barriers that aren't really there. The dark side is that positive thinking is that it tells you to ignore anything negative, and accept the status quo. Worse, in the United States at least, it is closely linked with evangelical Christianity, the culture of salesmanship, and uncritical patriotism. A coworker once explained to me how slavery in colonial America was a benign institution that harmed no one. This insane distortion of the historical fact was a necessary result of applying positive thinking to his conviction that America is the greatest country in the world. Tom Sackett answered in Mental Health/Addiction 4 months ago | Report Comment on this answer Enter your comment or ask a new question preview THIS IS A PREVIEW: Click "Post" to submit it or "Edit" to make changes. edit Please wait… This could take a minute if the tubes are clogged.

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• Reputation: 4209 Q&A: 121 4 6 1581 87 19 Classifieds: 0 0 what's this? Follow Following 5 Russ Campbell, NWEBS

  5 0 Think of all the people you know. Of the people you enjoy being with the most, what are the qualities that attract you? Is it because they make you feel at ease, make you smile, accept you for who you are, challenge you to think and be a better person? What is a friendship? What is love? Imbedded in these emotional concepts and bonds are unconditional acceptance and the unquestioning offer of support. This is the positive energy that gives us strength to grow, venture, learn and live on. It extends to every aspect of us, how we view the world, people, situations, and the unforeseen happenstance of life events. In an extreme situation, a person is diagnosed with a disease - Cancer. One individual hears a death sentence, thinks "I am sick, and will suffer and probably die." Another person thinks "So what!, Now what? What do I do from here to survive, recover and live on?" Medical science now recognizes how one's mindset and human emotional well-being can affect the prospects of the possible outcomes of the physical treatment of disease. An adult, a parent, looks at a child and says, "You are stupid and ugly, why did I get cursed by having you." another says to their child "Aren't you wonderful and smart, I am so proud of you and love you so much." We certainly know how these different scenarios could affect the internal development and self-esteem of children. Now how do you talk to yourself internally? When you look in the mirror, are you at ease with the person you see. We all have challenges, troubles and battles to face. But do you recognize you successes, hear the accolades and accept the good words said about you. Being proud and believing in yourself is also part of the energy of realizing your potential. It is easy to give ourselves internal negative talk and sabotage our own prospects for success. How to change? Start with simple positive affirmations, thought to yourself and also importantly said ALOUD. Scripting encouraging, supportive, calming, and successful self talk can be a key. You can post them where you will see them daily - the bathroom mirror, for example, so you remember to address yourself with good words and thoughts each morning. Also calming thoughts for rest and relaxation, pre-sleep suggestions to use when reclining for slumber. Placed at the bedside for recitation, especially internally with eyes closed before falling off. Tell yourself to have good dreams, to enjoy them, to solve problems, to remember your dreams, and to wake in the morning feeling refreshed and happy. The negative side of thinking dwells on perceived injustice, bad treatment, ill thoughts, worse scenarios, "woe is me", "nothing ever works out right", etc. Yell "STOP" (in your head or out loud) and replace those thoughts with the positive side. Seem silly? It's a process. It's recognizing that it is not dwelling on what happened and how it didn't meet your expectations, but what you do from that point on. It is how you accept the situation and move on from there. Russ Campbell, NWEBS answered in Mental Health/Addiction 4 months ago | Report Comment on this answer Enter your comment or ask a new question preview THIS IS A PREVIEW: Click "Post" to submit it or "Edit" to make changes. edit Please wait… This could take a minute if the tubes are clogged.

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• Reputation: 628 Q&A: 25 0 23 1123 1525 14 Classifieds: 0 0 what's this? Follow Following 3 Kristin Bell

  3 1 I know it seems ridiculous, but it really does work! That is kind of what cognitive-behavior therapy is all about. It takes effort, but it is well worth it. Not that you should be oblivious to the realities of the world, but why be depressed/negative when it doesn't help? This is my best understanding of how it works: basically when you counter a negative thought by ignoring it or trying to think of something positive instead, it actually creates changes in your brain! Think of it like every time you reinforce a thought or behavior you are carving out a pathway in your brain to make that thing easier and easier the next time and the time after that. It really is all about the connections you are forming in your brain and how different neurons are firing. I think the key to success with changing your thoughts is repetition. That is why people with depression have the best outcome if they COMBINE meds with therapy. The therapy actually does stuff to your brain! In fact, pretty much everything we do changes our brains. Anyway, if you are constantly repeating negative thoughts to yourself it will just reinforce them and they will be easier and easier to have. If you repeat positive thoughts, same thing. Kristin Bell answered in Mental Health/Addiction 4 months ago | Report 2 comments by Russ Campbell, NWEBS and Kristin Bell… 2 0 Repetition, very good point - simple and powerful. Very nice photo avatar! Russ Campbell, NWEBS commented 4 months ago | Report 1 0 Thanks Russ! :) Kristin Bell commented 4 months ago | Report Enter your comment or ask a new question preview THIS IS A PREVIEW: Click "Post" to submit it or "Edit" to make changes. edit Please wait… This could take a minute if the tubes are clogged.

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  1 0 I try and think of it in a constructive/non-constructive sort of dichotomy. I indulge in negative thinking only when I can make it work for me. For example, if I'm depressed about getting turned down for a job, I try and use that as impetus to improve my applications (or fill out more applications) rather than stew in black despair. It's also easy for me to imagine worst-case scenarios and then let those fantasies play out and play out in a downward spiral. Like Russ said, I have to cut myself off and say "STOP" when I catch on to what I'm doing. In my case, antidepressants also helped. Finally, be 100% aware of the distinction between negativity and realism. In deference to Tom's answer, avoiding negative thinking should not impact your ability or willingness to recognize and call out Bad Things when you see them. Sacrelicious answered in Mental Health/Addiction 4 months ago | Report Comment on this answer Enter your comment or ask a new question preview THIS IS A PREVIEW: Click "Post" to submit it or "Edit" to make changes. edit Please wait… This could take a minute if the tubes are clogged.

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  1 0 People can't necessarily "think happy" out of a chemical imbalance, but can fluctuate between different states which may or may not coincide with various attempts to "think happy". Try to think positively whenever possible, but set your expectations reasonably. If you're constantly failing to resolve issues of the self, talk to someone else. Your failure to use their methods to make YOURSELF feel better is not a personal failing. Don't let them convince you otherwise. Generally people who claim to "think positively" as a "solution" to all that ails them either don't have serious mental handicaps, are bragging to appear more in control over themselves than they may be, or may even be claiming credit for a shift of emotion that they have no control over (a subtle awareness of when they're shifting to a manic phase?) My very unscientific observation, if this continues to bother you, please talk to a professional :) Black Beetles in Amber answered in Mental Health/Addiction 4 months ago | Report Comment on this answer Enter your comment or ask a new question preview THIS IS A PREVIEW: Click "Post" to submit it or "Edit" to make changes. edit Please wait… This could take a minute if the tubes are clogged.

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• Reputation: 75 Q&A: 3 0 0 16 1 0 Classifieds: 0 0 what's this? Expert: 2 topics Get Fit! Mental Health/Addiction Follow Following 0

  0 0 I think it works when part of a holistic approach. From the perspective that mindfulness brings to therapy, a great way to approach habitual negative thinking is to notice it happening. When you are thinking negatively, is it familiar? I know, for myself at least, that lots of negativity is from the past, and that thinking "the same thing is happening again" often makes me feel resigned to let things go that route again. I think some good points have been made here about honoring negative feelings when they are authentic, and we do have the choice about where we want to encourage our mind and energy to go in the present. It is hard work, but at a certain point, what else are we going to do? HealOnCapHill answered in Mental Health/Addiction 4 months ago | Report 2 comments by Black Beetles in Amber and HealOnCapHill… 0 0 "I think it works when part of a holistic approach" But then it's not *doing* anything. Black Beetles in Amber commented 3 months ago | Report 0 0 In the sense of not reacting to negativity yes, but there is the conscious choice about which stories to believe and build on. HealOnCapHill commented 3 months ago | Report Enter your comment or ask a new question preview THIS IS A PREVIEW: Click "Post" to submit it or "Edit" to make changes. edit Please wait… This could take a minute if the tubes are clogged.

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• Reputation: 1195 Q&A: 21 0 13 542 42 3 Classifieds: 0 0 what's this? Follow Following 2 Sphinx

  0 0 I think that if you are the kind of person who consistently engages in negativity towards yourself or others in a way the obstructs solving problems, then trying to restructure your narrative about a situation might be a good thing to do. There is, however, a recent trend in our society where we are essentially being sold a concept based on "magical thinking"- basically, that we can cause concrete changes in the material world simply by how we approach our lives mentally and emotionally (this is the premise of books like "The Secret"). I think that this is actually a really harmful concept. For example, people with critical or chronic illness are often treated as though their illnesses are actually being caused by their own negativity, or that their physical condition would somehow magically improve if they were incredibly upbeat and positive about their situation. This is incredibly disturbing to me- essentially, this script suggests that if you are having problems, you should turn a blind eye to what actually ought to change, you should keep any and all negative emotions (grief, sadness, anger, frustration) about such problems to yourself and actually deny that you are experiencing them, and you should feel guilty about having any negative feelings about negative life events. I find this script incredibly isolating and blaming. Apart from the issues I see with the whole "positivity" trend, I find that criticism and negativity have their place in identifying issues and problems, acknowledging them, and seeking out real, concrete approaches that might solve or ameliorate these issues. It is not helpful to simply be certain that "things will sort themselves out" or that "it'll all be for the best" when there are real injustices, real sufferings, and real problems to be approached. However, if you find yourself engaging in a consistent negative script (even in situations that really don't warrant it) that doesn't lead you toward action but rather just discourages you, attempting to "retrain your brain" (as Kristen suggests) may be useful to you. Sphinx answered in Mental Health/Addiction 3 months ago | Report Comment on this answer Enter your comment or ask a new question preview THIS IS A PREVIEW: Click "Post" to submit it or "Edit" to make changes. edit Please wait… This could take a minute if the tubes are clogged.

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