Is your glass half empty or half full? How you answer this age-old question about positive thinking can reflect your outlook on life, your attitude toward yourself and determine whether you’re optimistic or pessimistic, and can even affect your health.
In fact, some studies show that personality traits such as optimism and pessimism they can affect many areas of your health and wellness. The positive thinking that often accompanies optimism is a key part of effective stress management. And effective stress management is associated with many health benefits. If you tend to be pessimistic, don’t despair, you can learn skills to manage positive thinking effectively.
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Understand positive thinking and internal dialogue
Positive thinking does not mean that you live on another planet and ignore the situations less pleasant in life. On the contrary, it means that you approach the unpleasant in a more positive and more productive way. That is, you think the best is going to happen, not the worst.
Positive thinking often begins with internal dialogue. The internal dialogue is the flow endless of unspoken thoughtswhat goes through your head. These automatic thoughts can be positive either negatives. Part of your internal dialogue comes from logic and reason. Another internal dialogue can arise from misconceptions you think, due to lack of information.
If the thoughts running through your head are mostly negativesyour outlook on life is more likely to be pessimistic. If your thoughts are mostly positiveIt is likely to be optimisticsimple.
The health benefits of positive thinking
The researchers continue exploring the effects of positive thinking and optimism In the health. The health benefits positive thinking can provide include:
- longer shelf life
- lower rates of depression
- lower levels of distress
- Greater resistance to common cold
- better wellness psychological Y physical
- Better health cardiovascular and lower risk of death from this type of heart disease
- Better coping skills during difficulties and the moments of stress
It is not clear why people who think positive experience these health benefits. One theory is that having a positive outlook allows them to better cope with stressful situations, which reduces the harmful effects of stress on the body’s health.
It is also believed that positive and optimistic people tend to lead healthier lifestyles: They are more physically active, eat a healthier diet, and do not smoke or drink alcohol excessively.
How to identify NEGATIVE thinking?
Not sure if your internal dialogue is positive either negative? Some common forms of negative self-talk include:
Filtration. You magnify the negative aspects of a situation and filter out all the positives. For example, you had a great day at work. You completed all your tasks ahead of time and were commended for doing a quick and thorough job. However, that night, you focus only on your plan to do even more tasks the next day and completely forget about the compliments you received during the day.
Customizing. When something bad happens, you automatically blame yourself. For example, you hear that a night out with friends is canceled and you assume that the change of plans is because no one wanted to be near you.
Catastrophism. It automatically anticipates the worst. For example, you go to buy a coffee and they bring you the wrong one. You immediately assume that everything that happens during that day will be bad and that it is a forecast of negative things that will happen to you from the coffee event.
Polarizing. You see things only as good either bad. There is no middle ground. You feel you have to be perfect or you are a total failure.
How to focus on positive thinking?
You can learn to turn negative thoughts into positive thoughts. The process is simple, but it takes time and practice; after all, you are creating a new habit. Here are some ways to think and behave in a more positive and optimistic
Identify areas to change. If you want to be more optimistic and think more positive, first identify the areas of your life that you usually think negatively about, whether it’s work, commuting, or a love relationship. You can start small concentrating on one area to address it in a more positive way.
Try it for yourself. Periodically throughout the day, stop and take stock of what you’re thinking. If you find that your thoughts are mainly negative, try to find a way to put a positive spin on them.
Become a person open to humor. Give yourself time to smile or laugh, especially during difficult times. Look for humor in everyday events. When you can laugh at life, you will feel less stressed.
Follow a healthy lifestyle. Try to exercise for about 30 minutes most days of the week. You can also divide it into periods of 10 minutes during the day. Exercise can positively affect mood and reduce stress. Follow a healthy diet to fuel your mind and body. And learn techniques to manage stress.
Surround yourself with positive people. Make sure the people in your life are positive and understanding people who you can trust to give you helpful advice and feedback. The negative people can increase your stress level and make you doubt your ability to manage stress in a healthy way.
Practice positive self-talk. Start by following a simple rule: Don’t say anything to yourself that you wouldn’t say to someone else. Be kind and encouraging to yourself. If a negative thought enters your mind, rationally evaluate it and respond with affirmations of what is good about you. Think about the things you are grateful for in your life.
Here are some examples of negative self-talk and how you can put a positive thinking spin on them:
Negative self talk vs Positive thinking
I have never done it before / It is an opportunity to learn something new.
it’s too complicated / I’ll approach it from a different angle.
I don’t have the resources / Necessity is the mother of invention.
I’m too lazy to do this / I couldn’t fit it into my schedule, but I can revisit some priorities.
There’s no way for it to work / I can try to make it work.
It is a radical change / Let’s take a risk.
no one bothers to contact me / I’ll see if I can open the channels of communication.
I’m not going to get any better at this / I’ll try again.
Practice positive thinking every day
If you tend to have a negative outlookdon’t expect to become optimistic From overnight. But with practice, eventually your internal dialogue will contain less self-criticism and more self-acceptance. You can also become less critical of the world around you.
When your state of mind is generally optimisticyou can better handle daily stress in a more constructive way.
info of Mayo Clinic