Do you find yourself flooded with negative thoughts and worries about the ongoing global pandemic? Are stressful thoughts making it difficult for you to enjoy most things at the moment?

It has been estimated that we have over 60 000 thoughts a day. At times our thoughts appear to emerge out of nowhere and we seem to have little control over our thinking.

By becoming more aware of our thought patterns, we can consciously begin to choose thoughts that feel better. In order to do this, we need a better understanding of how thoughts work.

THE SPIRAL OF NEGATIVE THOUGHT MOMENTUM: QUICK AND SPECIFIC

Imagine a thought as a rock at the top of a mountain. As the rock begins to roll down from the top of that mountain it gathers momentum, and its speed accelerates. This is exactly what happens with our thoughts when we are feeling off.

We may have one thought that doesn’t feel good and before we know it, the pace of our thought tends to gather momentum and leave us feeling worse off.

We may start off by thinking: ‘I’m worried about this virus’ and that leads into: ‘So many people are getting sick’, ‘A vaccine seems so far away’, ‘What if the vaccine doesn’t even work?’ Or, ‘what if the virus mutates in a way that makes the vaccine ineffective?’ ‘My life is never going to be normal again’.

Notice how specific and detailed these thoughts are. Very often this type of thought pattern occurs so quickly, without us even noticing. When was the last time you experienced a spiral of negative thoughts like this?

The key to overcoming a spiral of negative thought momentum is to first become aware of it. Our emotions are often the best indicator of this – when we aren’t feeling good, it’s usually an indication that we are experiencing negative thought momentum.

SLOWING DOWN AND GETTING GENERAL

Once we become aware, we can consciously try and break negative thought momentum. The best way to do this is to grab a pen and paper and actively write down slower and more generally thoughts.

For instance, from the initial thought of, ‘I’m worried about this virus’  we could try on a few general statements: ‘The majority of people that have caught the virus survive,’ ‘The lockdown seems to be having an impact’, ‘It’s in everyone’s interest to find a way out of this situation’, ‘The medical and scientific communities are tirelessly working on solutions to control the spread of the virus’, ‘However long the situation lasts, it will amount to a short blip in the overall span of my lifetime.’

Whereas negative thought momentum tends to be quite specific and zoomed-in, these statements are more general and zoomed-out. As a consequence, they tend to feel a lot better.

The next time you find yourself feeling low, pause and ask yourself what your last thought was and whether there is any scope for shifting that thought.

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