As many of you already know, life can be rather difficult at times for a million different reasons. If you feel like you are generally sad and depressed, it's very important that you take steps in order to become happy mentally. It's like heaven and hell, light and darkness. We all wanna be on that side where life feels like it's good to live and have peace of mind. There are ways to re-wire your brain so you can achieve this, here are some suggestions on what you can do yourself in order to get out of that negative thought-cycle.
- Be more aware of your thoughts.
Start out with identifying your thoughts from time to time. Are your thoughts generally happy ones or sad and depressing ones? If you find yourself thinking negative thoughts most of the time, that's what your overall mental experience will be, a negative one. The important first step is to try and replace these negative thoughts with neutral or happy ones. Identifying your thoughts is a great mental tool and you will have a better perspective of your own mental landscape so to speak.
- Replace negative thought-patterns.
Now that you can identify negative thoughts, try to overwrite them by thinking positive thoughts, be that thinking about happier times or mentally visualizing places or situations where you feel safe and comfortable. The more you work at this, the more negative thoughts you will overwrite in your brain.
An example of overwriting would be to start thinking about a place in time where you felt happy. Mentally visualize the place. See if you can remember any particular smells from that time and place. Remember the people you surrounded yourself with that made you feel at peace and «at home» mentally.
Be aware of how your entire body feels during this process. Start out with sensing the different parts of your body, like feet, legs, upper body, stomach, arms and face. Concentrate on each one of them and try to relax and be calm. Think about how you want your body to feel; light and calm.
The way you breathe is important. Take calm breaths and feel how your stomach feels filling up your lungs with air. If you have a lot of pain in your stomach that can be a sign of anxiety and stress that have accumulated over time. Do your best to eliminate this heavy and uncomfortable feeling in your gut by slowly breathing in and out and focus on just thinking about breathing.
The best place to do these exercises would be in a place where you feel like you can relax, i.e. out in nature or somewhere you won't be disturbed. Music can also be a powerful tool, listen to music that makes you feel good and relaxes you. Many people react positively to nature sounds, like that of running water or birds chirping. Whatever suits you and makes you feel comfortable.
Try your best to hold on to these positive thoughts, but don't overdo it to the point where you are holding on to your life. That can lead to stress. Try to hold on for as long as it feels comfortable and gently let the thought go. The brain works a little like a weird computer, so whatever you experienced will be saved to your «mental harddrive», so don't feel like you've lost something when the happy thoughts go away, remember you can always go back. With practice, this gets easier.
- Give yourself time to heal.
Remember that this mental process of overwriting negative thoughts is not done overnight, it might take some time before you notice any difference, all depending on how severe the sadness and depression is. It does work, however, so keep at it at your own pace and as long as it feels comfortable. Don't try to rush it, but work on it from day to day. Take your time. Healing can be a slow process, but in the end, it's definitively worth it. Never forget that your brain is a powerful tool that you in many ways can control, don't get lost in the sadness and despair, but try to take control of your own thoughts and emotions. This way you can get on the road to recovery and achieve mental happiness in the end.
Don't give up on yourself, treat yourself the best way possible mentally, because in the end what we think is how we feel.
