Helpful or Unhelpful: What Thoughts Will You Think Today?

Connect!
Connect!

A young woman approached me after a keynote presentation recently. She liked an exercise we did on reframing negative situations into something more positive. She told me about how she has suffered from anxiety for years; largely related to a sexual assualt she suffered as a teenager. She liked the reframing exercise because it was so easy.

I told her about something even easier that she might try.

When our son was in Grade 2, the Health Sciences Centre Department of Psychiatry came to his school seeking children and parents to volunteer to experience a communication skills program called ‘Best Friends’ (at least, I think that is what it was called…it has been many years and I have since lost track of the manual, the researcher’s name, and the purpose of the study, but I remember the outcome of the learning very clearly!).

Our son did not experience anxiety at the time, and does not to this day. Although the program was targeted at children with anxiety, the pilot group included any child that was interested and willing to participate. We enthusiastically signed up! (Okay, I should say ‘I’ rather than ‘we’ enthusiastically signed up; but everyone was willing to check it out.)

The researchers asked parents (and their child) to complete the program over a number of months. The students received a manual and did some learning and practice at school. The parents did some reading, and both the parents, the child, and the teacher journalled during the experience.

I remember being so excited when I realized what our son was learning. One piece has stuck with me over all of these years.

The children were taught that thoughts are just thoughts; that they are not facts. And, they were taught that they could choose thoughts that help (rather than hurt) them.

For example, let’s say that you are playing on the school ground and a boy – we’ll call Johnny – steals your ball. You might feel angry. You might be thinking that Johnny is mean, or that Johnny is a bully. You might cry, run to tell a teacher, or get into a school-yard fight with Johnny.

Thinking that Johnny is mean or that he is a bully are not very helpful thoughts. They do not help you achieve your outcome of wanting to have fun on the school ground.

Consider that you could have a more helpful thought about Johnny. You could think that Johnny wants to play and does not know how to ask. You might then invite him and say ‘Hey, Johnny…why don’t you join our game?’

I remember us practising with ?all sorts of situation, and in each one we could easily identify an unhelpful thought (often the default) and a helpful thought.

The key is, we can call choose thoughts that help us achieve our outcomes, that help to move us toward what we want, and that help us be smarter and more resourceful, no matter what comes our way.

In 2012, I posted this blog.

http://www.derilatimer.com/out-damned-thought/

Shortly after, I got a message from the father of a 9 year old boy. He was concerned about his son, who was experiencing very high levels of anxiety. The boy was constantly telling himself that no one liked him, that he was dumb, that school was really hard, and that he had no friends.

This father decided that he was going to share some of the post with his son. He said ‘it seems strange to ask a 9 year old to think about his thoughts, but that is exactly what he needs to do’. And he needs to choose different thoughts and then notice what happens.

This article by Elisha Goldstein, ‘Three Common Mind Traps That Sink Happiness’, speaks to this. Goldstein describes how our lives and our minds become routine, and our thinking, interpreting, expecting and relating to people be come habits; they become our auto-pilot. He goes on to describe that often the auto-pilot is getting in the way of our happiness; particularly when we catastrophize, discount the positive and exaggerate the negative, and point blame.

So, connect with yourself (your thoughts) and connect with other people. The young woman who approached me was so glad that she came to the conference and that she connected with others while she was there. She felt better. The reframing exercise was done in small groups. She realized in doing this simple exercise that she could change her thoughts, affect her experience, and that she was not alone in thinking the thoughts she thought. This article in The Guardian by Will Hutton, references the importance of remembering that we are social beings and we need each other. “For happiness can never result from the exercise of choice alone: we are social beings, and the building blocks of happiness lie in looking out for each other, acting together, being in teams and pursuing common goals for the common good.”

Elisha Goldstein’s article reminds us of an old cartoon of a man and woman sitting on a couch in front of a TV, with a caption that reads ‘It’s 12 o’clock, do you know where your mind is?’. He beautifully reminds you that you can cultivate “the ability to be more present to these mind traps” and that the practice of being more present “will help you break free from (the traps) and shift your attention on more effective ways of interacting with life.”

It’s (look at the time) o’clock, do you know where your mind is? Or better yet, it’s (look at the time) o’clock, are your thoughts helping or hurting?

Deri Latimer is an expert in positive possibilities for people! A TEDx Speaker and Author, Deri?s message reinforces that positive habits are the pathway to a happier and healthier life ? at work, at home and at any age!?www.derilatimer.com

 

 

 

 

 

My Valentine to You

It is the month of love.

I remember as a young girl in elementary school, it was so exciting when Valentine’s Day arrived. Way back then (yes, I was in elementary school in the stone age!), we kids would carefully hang our folders around the classroom and then throughout the day, other kids would add valentines to them. I remember being so excited to see if the the cute boy that I liked at the time would add a valentine to my folder. If he did, it meant he loved me. If he didn’t…well, I told myself he was just too shy to show me he loved me! (I was blessed to have a mother who helped me constantly add a positive frame to things.)

Continue reading “My Valentine to You”

Three Ways to Reset your Brain for Resilience

Never too little, never too late!
Never too little, never too late!

There is a lot of information available on healthy ageing; and much of that writing includes strategies for a healthy brain, like this article by Michele Rosenthal titled 7 Ways to Exercise Your Brain – and Why You Really Need To!

When I spoke at a Senior’s Wellness Day recently, I was reminded about how important it is for all of us – at any age – to practice strategies that help keep our thinking flexible and ‘buoyant’ during every phase of our lives.

Three strategies that are particularly useful are 1) ReACT, 2) Reframe, and 3) ReAlign.

1) ReACT: Stuff will happen. No matter who you are, where you live, or what you do, your life will be filled with surprises – many happy ones and some that you’d rather avoid. When one of the latter happens in your life, instead of reacting impulsively (and often negatively) try this strategy to ReACT:

A – Accept your current reality. Say, out loud or to yourself, ‘I accept (whatever it is that is negative).’ For example, you might say ‘I accept that my friend is showing signs of dementia.’

C – Choose a vision of what you’d like in this situation. When you decide what you want, your brain automatically moves into a more positive state. In the example above, you might say ‘I choose to be a positive influence on my friend, and to enjoy spending time with her as much as I can.’

T – Take action to move toward your vision. When you are moving toward your vision (what you want), you are not gripped (and limited) by moving away from what you don’t want (the negative situation). In this example, you might do the following: ‘I will become informed about dementia so I can be a helpful resource for my friend.’ ‘I will visit my friend when I am well rested and am feeling good.’ ‘I will take my friend out for a walk or to enjoy a coffee at our favourite spot at least once a week.’

2) Reframe. Thoughts are just thoughts. They are not facts. When you experience a negative emotion, the internal dialogue you are having is generally negative and self-limiting. A reframe is a way of changing that narrative (thoughts) so that you can make the best choice possible in that situation.

Let’s say a store clerk does not respond when you say ‘Thank you’ after making your purchase. Your might feel angry, and your internal dialogue might be something like ‘These young people today have no manners! They don’t care about giving great service, particularly when it is to an older person! They have no respect!’

You could choose to reframe these thoughts. Your reframe might be, ‘She must not have heard me say “thank you”.’; or ‘He is likely distracted with something important right now.’; or ‘She might not have been trained how to interact with customers.’ Any of these reframes will result in a slight shift in YOUR emotional experience. You might still like to have a ‘You’re Welcome’ when you say ‘Thank You’ but you will not be focused, negatively, on a story about the clerk that serves neither you nor anyone who might run into you the rest of that day!

You might even decide to provide some feedback to the clerk – to let him know that a ‘You’re Welcome’ would be most welcome to you! If you do decide to do that – and you choose a softer reframe – you’ll be in a much more resourceful state when you provide that feedback. After all, remind yourself that the story you are telling yourself is just a story…so why not choose a story that helps you to be more positive and more effective in your interactions.

And, let’s face it, you truly have no idea what might be going on for that clerk at that time and on that day. Your softened reframe, and helpful approach, might be just what that clerk needs in what might be an otherwise lousy day.

3) ReAlign. When you experience a challenging situation, choose a body exercise to help you realign your energy.

One of my favourites is called ‘Skiing’. It is a wonderful body exercise to use when you find yourself feeling agitated and angry.

Stand feet apart, knees bent. As if you are skiing, bring your hands up and then down, allowing a ‘swoosh’ sound to come out of your mouth as you breathe out. Repeat 5-8 times or until you have released some of the angry energy. Notice your capacity to care, once the energy is released.

I also like ‘Hands over Eyes’, a great exercise to use when you are feeling overwhelmed with ruminating thoughts.

Rub your hands together rapidly until they are warm. Place a hand over each eye. Notice how the soothing heat from your hands calms the state of your mind.

My last book is filled with thinking strategies and body exercises. I am most happy to provide you with a free copy of WakeUpToYourHabits_ebook here. It includes 52 body exercises that can help you to shift out of negative emotion and into positive emotion. Try out the exercises and choose the ones that work for you.

I’d love to hear what works for you. Leave a comment here or email me at deri@derilatimer.com.

Deri Latimer is an expert in positive possibilities for people! A TEDx Speaker and Author, Deri’s message reinforces that positive habits are the pathway to a happier and healthier life at work, at home and at any age! www.derilatimer.com