Article in brief: Thoughts have the power to do anything. But when they are negative, can they lead to our own destruction? What are the effects of negative thoughts and how can we get over them?
“Nobody likes me!”, “I am such a loser!”, “I will fail this semester!” Those are a few common phrases we hear from people. People go on saying these things all the time without thinking about the consequence and effects it has on them as individuals.
Negative thinking is the pessimism in seeing things and exaggeration in the evaluation of conditions and situations. Those negative auto-responding thoughts are in everyone’s mind, they influence our actions and our conclusions. Most of us don’t have a clear understanding or full awareness of a negative thought’s role in our minds and impact in our lives.
Our thoughts usually generate our feelings and attitude. While doing so, they will also have their effect on our perceptions, relationships and maybe become a part of our personality and mental compositions.
The causes of these negative thoughts vary from one person to another. Some people were raised in a way where there is excessive monitoring and control on their actions; everything they do is followed by strict negative criticism with deep magnifying of mistakes. Other people just over criticize and detract themselves because, for some reason, they think they aren’t good enough.
There are hundreds of causes, but there are only some common serious effects. Our bodies are nothing but servants to our minds. Negative thoughts have the ability to demoralize our bodies, lower the immune system defenses and therefore, turn us into easy preys for long lasting diseases. Negative thoughts are so powerful that they can cause and cure cancer.
Nowadays, many hospitals are curing cancer with nothing but ‘positive thinking’. After admitting the cancer patients, they implant in them positive thinking, and with the care of professionals, they shield them from facing their cancer by redirecting them to positive thinking. Many people became cancer-free after this experiment.
Negativity also causes a huge lack of interest, determination, ambition and productivity which leads to frequent failures in life.
Leaving aside the negative effects it has on us, our negativity also affects others. Negativity spreads to people we hang out with causing them to also see life from a dull perspective.
Getting rid of the negativity is very hard, but it’s a must. We have to train ourselves to take responsibility and accountability towards our mistakes; we also have to take a look at our accomplishments and believe in ourselves and encourage ourselves to do more. Look at things positively, no matter how bad they may seem. Engage yourself in new hobbies; do things you have always wanted to do. Stop criticizing your actions. Learn from your mistakes instead of letting them take over your mind.
Don’t allow your negativity to spoil your happiness. Your thoughts can either be your worst enemy or your best friend. Always remember that after all, you are what you think.
References:
- Springer Link (1995). Positive thinking: An unfair burden for cancer patients. Retrieved April 13,2014 from http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF00343919
- The Soil And Health. Effects of thoughts on health and the body. Retrieved April 13, 2014 from http://www.soilandhealth.org/03sov/0304spiritpsych/030405thinketh/030405thoughtonbody.html
1 Comment