It’s hard not to get into a negative mindset from time to time, but if this is always the case, it can seriously hinder you in life.
As much as we always like to be optimistic, the truth is that this is not realistic. Hard times will happen, but that’s just the natural course of life. Without the hard times, you will never appreciate the good, so it is normal to go through periods with a negative mindset. The problem arises when this mindset becomes fixed because it will ruin your life.
The good news is that you can beat it. This article will look at the problems caused by a negative mindset, and how it should not take over you.
What causes a negative mindset?
This seems like a simple question, but it is much deeper than that. A negative mindset can come from things that happened in your childhood, fear, anxiety, or other trauma. Some people are more prone to pessimism in life, so a negative mindset tends to be their default setting. That doesn’t mean they can’t get over it though.
Fear is one of the biggest causes of a negative mindset. Negativity is just fear in disguise and there are always things to be afraid of. If you fear and worry about the state of the world, your job, your finances, or your health, you become overwhelmed and negative.
These persistent negative thoughts can slowly begin to destroy your life. Here are some ways to do that:
- Your stress hormones go through the roof
A little pressure is okay because this is your fight-or-flight mechanism at work. This is caused by stress hormones like cortisol and this is important if you need to jump out of the way of a speeding car. But the constant release of stress hormones over time becomes very harmful. Here are some of the problems that elevated stress hormones can cause:
depression
anxiety
Digestive problems
insomnia
overweight
Cognitive problems
My heart disease
high blood pressure
Heart attack
This is just a small sampling as the list gets a little longer. You can see how this constant state of stress harms the body. The big problem here is that it doesn’t matter if that stress is real or perceived—the body still responds the same way. The constant release of cortisol from a negative mindset occurs and puts your health at serious risk.
- You don’t have to value the good things in life
The more you focus on negative situations in life, the more you ignore anything good that happens to you. It can be easy to focus on what’s going on in life, but this keeps you from feeling joyful. It is easy to slip into this way of thinking, but it only serves to prevent you from finding true happiness. In the same way, we can always find something to complain about, and you can also find something to appreciate. - You are unable to communicate with other people as well
You may have noticed that it is not the most pleasant thing to be around someone who has a very negative mindset. If this mindset is happening in you, you will alienate those closest to you.
This also comes down to a simple matter of brain chemistry and the issue of cortisol. Besides controlling fight-or-flight responses, cortisol has the effect of shutting down some of the higher cognitive parts of the brain. The parts it affects are the important parts of how we interact and communicate with others. These areas of the brain are involved in empathy, compassion, and forgiveness.
So a negative mindset physically affects your ability to love and care for others. Things don’t get much worse.
How do you overcome a negative mentality?
The important thing that boils down to all of this—and a more useful way of looking at negativity—is that it’s a habit. Often, a negative mindset does not arise from very complex things or events. Small issues can be enough to get you into that nasty void and when you constantly think this way, it becomes a habit.
They say it takes 21 days to create a habit, so think of what years and years of negative thinking did to solidify it as a normal mindset. But we can get rid of any bad habit. Here are some ways:
- Start with a journal
This is an easy way to jot down any positive things that happen. It doesn’t matter how small it is. Help write it down. If you can get in the habit of writing down the things you appreciate—even if it’s as simple as seeing the sunrise—it helps train your brain to look for the positives in life. - Remember positive situations
This has to do with breaking the habit. Any time you find yourself in a negative mindset, direct your thoughts to moments when you feel peaceful, calm, happy, and reassured. This may take effort, but in the end, it can help overcome that negative mindset. - Start questioning ideas
Your mind and your mind are two different things. Your mind and its formation are easily affected by external forces, whether negative or positive. When negative thoughts creep in, start questioning them.
Look at negative thoughts like spam. You will not take spam seriously, just delete it. You have to do the same with negative thoughts and ask, “Should I be taking this seriously?” And think of it as spam from outside that comes in only to cause harm.
