Change Your Mind
Our thoughts create our realities.
Thus, paying attention to the quality of what your mind puts forth in each moment plays a crucial role in the transformation process.
When your mind sucks you into a downward spiral and feeds the demons of judgement, fear, anxiety, and unworthiness, your suffering is sure to increase.
The relationship with yourself lies at the heart of healing and transformation. You will only make progress when you think and feel more kindly towards yourself.
Positive self-regard aligns you with the healing energies of the universe.
Like attracts like.
Maintaining an authentically positive attitude, however, can be challenging. Transforming the quality of thought takes mindfulness, discipline, and lots of practice.
We are not born with a mind that is inclined towards the negative. To the contrary, a negative outlook develops as a result of learning from others such as parents, peers, and teachers. Early depression and the experience of trauma also have an enormous impact on how we think.
Creating mental vibrancy is not about being happy all the time. It is about learning to maintain objectivity and perspective when the mind begins to descend into negative or victimized thinking.
Cultivating a positive attitude is much more complex than using affirmations; it is learning to gently coax thinking/feeling energy into a more positive flow.
So when your mind goes dumpster-diving, how can you get it to shift gears?
Here are some suggestions:
- Validate your feelings without indulging your thoughts. If you are dwelling angrily on something, check yourself and gently say ”geez, I must be pretty angry right now.” This is the practice of compassionate mindfulness in action.
- Bring your focus from your mind to your body. Let your body tell the real story. Is there any part of your body that is uncomfortable? Do you notice which chakra is most activated? What is the energy underlying your negative thoughts?
- If you can find anything funny or ridiculous about what you are thinking, engage your humor. Humor shifts energy instantaneously.
- Make yourself do something productive. The sense of achievement is a surefire way to mobilize more positive energy.
- Imagine how you would like to feel right now. Even though you aren’t “there,” try to feel it through the use of imagination. If you can imagine a positive feeling you will create it.
- If all else fails and you just can't get your mind out of its downward spiral, observe and accept your thoughts. Breathe deeply and remember it will pass...
The practice of transforming your thinking from a negative to positive outlook will change your life.
And you will light the fires of the transformation process!
Be Well,
Rebecca
Lamphire Woods image by Jennifer Hopkins ( http://jenhopkins.com/about/artwork-2/ ) with a Creative Commons license
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