The most difficult thing for a person is to convince himself of something. And it doesn't matter what it is: an obsessive thought or bad habit, fears, anxieties get in the way, low self-esteem, lack of self-confidence, weak willpower. We may think that our brain can only be trained: to study sciences, languages, solve logical problems. And what about our mental sphere? After all, it also needs to be trained, to carefully monitor your emotional health. A constant sounding song does not give rest in the head, or annoying thoughts keep spinning and ruining life. Either you worry because of the fear that the kettle was not turned off or the apartment was forgotten to be closed, the light was left on or the fear of getting into a car accident. All these thoughts do not allow you to calmly and sensibly reflect on situations, solve problems and achieve success in life.

What are intrusive thoughts?

As the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle says: Fear makes people think. And this is true as soon as our thin strings of the soul and subconsciousness capture a strong emotional overstrain, which bites into our brain so much that various phobias arise. We become afraid of doing something wrong, of being ridiculed or punished for our actions. Entire carriages of thoughts come to mind, sometimes it is very difficult to control this flow, and sometimes it is impossible. It seems that it is not subject to our will, bad thoughts completely surround and lead us astray from the right path of reflection. Think for yourself how many times, when you can’t complete a task or solve a problem, you scroll through the dialogue with yourself, mentally reproach yourself for your inferiority, ignorance, underdevelopment, get angry, afraid to do it wrong. Such thoughts only lead your thoughts to a false path, do not allow you to see the rational grain in the situation, and anger grows more and more, time is running out. And then, comes disappointment with oneself and the desire to find out where these unpleasant and such annoying obsessive thoughts come from? And most importantly: how to get rid of obsessive thoughts.

Psychologists believe that obsessive thoughts are a neurotic disorder - a neurosis or a syndrome of obsessive thoughts. This disorder is characterized by obsessive states, thoughts - obsessions and corresponding behavior - compulsions. In fact, many people quickly and painlessly cope with such a misunderstanding between a person and the psyche, while others require the help of a psychotherapist. Obsessive thoughts can be associated with diseases, disasters, death, dirt, not ideality. Coping with the slightest obsessive thought is sometimes difficult, but possible. Before you scourge yourself and go to a psychiatric clinic for help, pull yourself together and try to figure out on your own how to get rid of obsessive thoughts, and we will help you with this.

A developed system, a step-by-step guide to cope with the flow of obsessive thoughts and remove yourself from their influence.

Fear is not at all in danger, it is in ourselves - said Stendhal, French writer. To understand the causes of fear, take one day to complete the guide and everything will work out. main reason the appearance of annoying thoughts is fear: before people, society, mom, dad, one’s soul, death. We are afraid to give ourselves discomfort, and when we experience it, our thoughts are increasingly trying to “secure” it from it. Say NO to intrusive thoughts and start the fight.

Instructions for managing your thoughts and emotions

1. Change the strategy of perceiving these thoughts - to the all-in method. Turn not your back to the annoying murmur and fear, but your face, take them for granted, as one step on the path to improvement. Believe me, when the attitude towards these thoughts changes, it will become much easier for you to find a way to get rid of it. As soon as a thought comes to mind, like: Did I turn off the iron? I can't do it because I can't. Find the positive aspects in them: if I think about it, then it is this quality that is worth developing: attentiveness or the ability to analyze, memory. Say "thank you" to yourself for the tip. Thus, learn from each such thought. For such an analysis, set aside a day, and write down the lessons learned on paper.
2. The next step is as soon as a sticky thought arises that you cannot get rid of, calm down, take a comfortable position, take a pen and a piece of paper. Close your eyes and let your thoughts flow without forcing or fighting them. Then, quietly opening your eyes, write them down on paper. These can be arguments or internal dialogue, censures or thoughts like: what if ... When the sheet is filled, turn on slow soothing music and read what you wrote. It will not seem as scary and terrible, hopeless as it really is. We read it, we learned a lesson: we ourselves inflate the situation. Now you can defiantly tear, burn or throw away this paper and thought at the same time.
3. Rummage through your memory and determine which picture in front of your eyes causes a storm of only positive emotions, tenderness and cheer up. Found? Now, with every flash of obsessive thoughts, turn on sleep mode and scroll through this picture or situation, so you are distracted and you can just forget what you thought about before.
4. When unwanted and annoying thoughts swarm in the brain, think about whether this is a reaction to a hidden meaning. For example, one should learn English language, words or constructions, grammar exercises. And the reluctance to do this causes other thoughts, there are beliefs that a person will not be able to complete the task or learn the words. The hidden meaning is in plain sight, find it and use point 1 - change your attitude and believe in yourself.

Tips for those who need to be able to control their thoughts

• Find the true cause of such thoughts, what you are really afraid of: death, pain, fire. Try to live with it, fighting will only make things worse. To rise above fear is your task.
• At the first analysis of your thoughts, you will feel unpleasant, feel ashamed, uncomfortable. But this is all temporary, as soon as you find reasons to get rid of them, you will feel relieved.
• Be ready for a new attack of obsessive thoughts, do not be afraid and do everything from the beginning, be ready to fight back.

It is impossible to live happily ever after. Although sometimes we will experience sad events that will give rise to negative thoughts. And that's okay. But if bad thoughts begin to haunt you all day long, then it's time to sound the alarm. Otherwise, you can easily get depressed. But how do you get rid of bad thoughts? And why do they even occur?

Sources of negative thoughts

Negative thoughts can occur even in those people who are doing great in life. A person lives quietly and calmly, and suddenly bad thoughts creep in. They spin in the head and after a while they take away all the attention. But where did they come from? Bad thoughts can come for the following reasons:

1. human inconsistency. Every person makes decisions in their life. There are unimportant decisions - what to eat for dinner, how to dress for a bachelorette party for your best friend. And there are decisions that significantly change the course of life. It's about about changing jobs, moving, marriage, having children. And before deciding on an important step, a person begins to weigh all the advantages and disadvantages in his head. On the one hand, he may want to make a positive decision, and on the other hand, he is afraid that such a decision will lead to problems. And such thoughts attract doubts that do not give rest day or night.
2. Guilt. No one can always make the right decisions. Sometimes people are wrong. But some learn from a mistake and then move on. And others wind themselves up, think how they could have acted in that situation. Simply put, a person lives in the past. He may understand in his head that it is impossible to fix something, but he is not able to say goodbye to obsessive thoughts about that situation. Guilt not only destroys the nervous state, but is also a good tool for manipulators.
3. Helplessness. Some problems need to be accepted and learned to live with them. But easier said than done. Even the most strong-willed person gives up, he feels like a hostage in captivity of a high tower. His mind is filled with fear of an unknown future.

Whatever the cause of obsessive thoughts, they must be driven away. Otherwise, you can fall into depression. How to get rid of bad thoughts?

Why are bad thoughts dangerous?

Many do not understand the danger of bad thoughts. They reason like this: “What difference does it make what I think? The main thing is that it did not change my usual life. And indeed, at first, nothing globally bad will happen to a person. But soon he will fall into depression, and if soul-searching continues, then neurosis begins. And it's not difficult to get into a hospital for the mentally ill there. But, in addition to the destructive effect on the psyche, bad thoughts:

1. They don't let you do it right. When a person immerses himself in negativity, his brain is not able to correctly perceive the events that are happening around. It is difficult for a person to concentrate on even simple tasks. As a result, depression sets in.
2. They provoke diseases. Most of the "clients" of psychiatric hospitals are individuals suffering from psychological syndromes. But all their problems began from the fact that they worked themselves up and did not want to change anything in the subconscious.
3. Materialize. Many cases are known when a person's thoughts materialized into life. For example, a man dreamed of a beautiful house and after a while such a house appeared in him. But he can program himself for a bad event. A person is afraid of falling ill with a terrible disease and through certain period such a disease is diagnosed in him.

Evil thoughts often become very intrusive. And in order to save yourself from them, you have to seek help from psychologists to get rid of nervous syndromes. But even they will not help if the patient is not able to understand why bad thoughts arise. Then how to distract from bad thoughts? And how to independently identify a person with bad thoughts?

What does a person with obsessive thoughts look like?

People who suffer from obsessive thoughts are easy to recognize among the crowd. And this will help the analysis of the behavior of such persons:

1. they are terrified of contracting some disease. Obsessive thoughts about the disease climb into their heads and force them to constantly perform various hygiene procedures. Their fear pushes for daily general cleaning and disinfection using strong chemicals;
2. they are always in emotional stress, because they are afraid of sudden danger. Their thoughts are occupied with whether the iron is turned off, whether the tap in the bathroom is turned off, whether the door is locked;
3. they tend to think that everything can be done perfectly. At the same time, they constantly try to keep the commandments of God, forgetting about the sinful nature of man. And the slightest mess in the room provokes depression;
4. they are too steeped in the past. They store children's drawings, toys, diaries from school, old clothes and other unnecessary things. And if these "precious" things are thrown away by someone else, then a terrible depression begins;
5. in emergency they always think of the bad. If one of the relatives is out of the access zone, then such a person forgets about the possible discharge of the phone, and starts calling morgues and hospitals, winding himself up.

Such symptoms complicate the life of not only the patient, but also the people around him. To make life easier, you need to start fighting obsessive thoughts.

To cope with the disease, it is necessary to treat not the symptoms, but to look for the root cause of the disease. The same can be said about obsessive thoughts. Sit in a quiet environment and think about what triggered these thoughts. In addition, psychologists advise using following methods to fight bad thoughts:

1. Avoid negative emotions. To do this, stop watching the news, start ignoring all the bad things that are said on the radio on the bus or what colleagues in the office whisper about. Find an activity that will please your soul - go fishing, grow flowers, read interesting books. Communicate with cheerful people, and preferably children. Children are stronger than adults are able to enjoy good events.
2. Finding the positive in negative situations. On a sheet of paper in a column, write down all the events that make you think about the bad. On the contrary, write pleasant emotions that you felt in those situations. Such an exercise can free oneself from bad thoughts and see the good.
3. List the fears on a sheet and burn it. Burning a sheet that lists fears will help get all the negative thoughts out of your head. When burning, imagine how your anxiety and tension disappear in the fire. To consolidate the effect, this procedure should be done several times. You can also print your fears on a computer, and replace the burning ritual by simply deleting the file to the trash.
4. Boost your confidence. You need to understand that only you are responsible for your life. Set small goals and do your best to achieve them. And when you reach it, praise yourself for it. In this case, fears will quickly disappear.
5. Turn on your own imagination. When negative thoughts and fears come to you, imagine a picture of a landscape or other beautiful place. Consider this place in detail. This option helps to remove bad thoughts from your head on your own.
6. Eat antidepressant products. It is not necessary to take medicine to throw out bad thoughts. Eat natural, mood-boosting foods. Such products include chocolate, bananas, raisins, celery and sea fish.

Another important method in treating bad thinking is meditation.

How useful is meditation in the fight against bad thoughts?

Meditation is recognized by psychologists as the most effective way to clear bad thoughts. As a rule, it is used to concentrate attention or go into the subconscious. For a person in depression, meditation makes it possible to forget about the bad thoughts that so climb into the head. It is worth starting meditation only after a detailed study this method. At first, it must be carried out when you have previously tuned in to positive emotions.

Very often, in order to get obsessive thoughts out of the head, a person uses false methods in solving this problem. He may think that meditation and other methods for curing bad thoughts are ineffective.

What will not get rid of bad thoughts?

Poor helpers in the treatment of obsessive thinking are:

1. Self-pity or excessive severity. After a series of troubles, a person begins to feel sorry for himself too much, considers his person to be the unloved of fate. All this creates more fear. And sometimes a person subconsciously does not part with bad attitudes. Imagine that you are overweight. On the one hand, you sob into your pillow every evening and think why you didn’t get the figure of a top model, and on the other hand, you like it so much when others feel sorry for you, console you, convince you for hours that a person’s weight is not the main thing. After such consolations, you get the legal right to go and eat your anxiety with cakes and other sweets. True, the nervous tension does not disappear from this. The problem will remain with the person until the time when his subconscious mind ceases to be protected from its solution.
2. Imagine bad consequences. To throw out negative thoughts faster, you should not imagine the terrible consequences of your own mistakes. Imagine that you are planning a trip to Italy for your vacation. You run and collect documents for a visa in your free time. And it seems that you meet the deadlines, but the anxiety that you will spend your vacation not in the country of your dreams, but in the country does not cease to torment. Saying the following text will help get rid of nervous tension in such a situation: “I am sitting in a comfortable chair. Everything is good in my life. I will spend my vacation in Italy, and all bad thoughts are just my fantasies. After such an exercise, your mind will be reminded of positive emotions.

Every time a bad thought comes to visit you, keep yourself busy. Labor is the most The best way treatment of negative thinking and long depression.

Question: Some believe that the inducement to what is good and the warning against what is condemned are an interference in a person's personal life. How true are such statements?

Answer: Man is the enemy of the unknown. Such thoughts arise in those people who are not entirely aware of reality. Let's try to look at this issue with different points vision:

1. This life is like a ship, and the society in which we live are the passengers of this ship. It is the responsibility of each passenger to warn those who wish to harm this ship. Therefore, in this situation, it would be wrong to say that everyone can do what he wants.

Based on this, every person with reason knows that in every society there are certain traditions and customs, and every system has certain conditions. And a reminder of this is not an invasion of privacy, but rather is the duty of every member of society.

However, this reminder, warning and exhortation, is not the business of every person. This business also has its own terms and conditions. For example, there is a hadith that says: “He who sees any evil among you, let him correct it with his hand. If there is not enough strength for this, then let him correct it with his tongue. If he does not have enough strength for this, then let him be against it in his heart, and this is the weakest manifestation of faith.(Muslim, Iman, 78), shares these duties.

It is the duty of the state to eliminate the evil done by hand (by force). To correct evil with the tongue through instructions and exhortations is the duty of the Ulama. BUT simple people should be disgusted with the evil in their hearts, and should make dua to correct that evil.

2. If some organ or cell of our body is affected by an ailment, then this affects not only this organ or cell, but also the whole organism as a whole. Therefore, it is necessary to immediately begin to treat this organ, and if necessary, to perform an operation in order to prevent harm to the entire body, as well as mental health.

Would it be appropriate to ask: “Why are you treating this organ?”. Similarly, society is a single organism. And if the individual members of this society, like the cells of the body, are sick, then shouldn't they be treated?

However, it is necessary to look for such ways of correction so as not to damage this cell, for which it is necessary to contact a specialist.

3. He who has not corrected himself will not be able to correct others. First of all, we ourselves must do good, being an example. Like the sun, we must first illuminate ourselves, and only then spread this light to others. So that whoever desires may benefit from this light.

This means that in order to prevent evil, it is necessary to do good yourself, being a good example for others.

I have already prepared this article for a long time, but I still could not write it for the reason that I was not sure that I had a complete idea of how to get rid of intrusive thoughts.

Now I have experienced first hand how to deal with such thoughts and am fully prepared to tell you about it.

Perhaps some of my readers think that since I started creating this site, I have completely got rid of all personal problems. Indeed, I have already changed a lot by the time of the first entries in this blog, but my current state cannot be called complete freedom from negative emotions, prejudices and fears.

My position can be described as a struggle with myself, during which the experience and materials for these articles are born. Of course, in this confrontation between my true self and the primitive, instinctive, emotional self, the first gradually wins.

But this struggle continues: two steps back and four steps forward. Self-development stems from the awareness of one's shortcomings and work on them. If there is no struggle, then this does not speak of a final victory, but rather of surrender.

After all, self-development is an endless process. I keep running into some problems and struggling with them. Including intrusive thoughts.

Mind "gum"

These thoughts have always been with me. They could occupy my head and make me nervous, endlessly mentally referring to the same experiences. It was like mental gum.

I constantly chewed the same thoughts in my head, tried to resolve them, to untie some imaginary knot. But from my attempts to weaken it, on the contrary, it tied even more strongly.

I remember how, back in my early childhood, I could not stop thinking about some things that I could not think about at all. The habit of my brain endlessly “processing” some experiences and ideas must have been exacerbated during times of other psychological problems.

Recently, I realized that I learned to work with obsessive thoughts. Moreover, I am ready to formulate a method that allows me to get rid of them. I realized that this article might now finally appear.

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Obsessive thoughts come from emotions

This is the first thing you must understand. Obsessive thoughts are emotional, unconscious, irrational nature. They are connected with your fears, anxieties and complexes deprived of everything reasonable.

That is why they are obsessive. The emotions that form in you make you constantly think about something. They seem to signal “Problem! Problem! We need to find a solution!"

It's like a notification in Windows or something operating system, which appears as an icon and will irritate your eyes until you update some program, remove a virus, or install the correct driver.

We can say that obsessive thoughts have a positive function. They remind you of the problems you need to solve. And you can’t just take and turn off these “notifications”. It's hard to starve to death when your brain constantly reminds you to eat.

But, unfortunately, obsessive thoughts do not always tell us about some real problem. The mechanism of the emergence of these thoughts is quite subtle. And if, for some reason, the “standard settings” of this mechanism get lost, then natural human fears and worries can take an extreme form, manifesting themselves in the form of obsessive thoughts, which are very difficult to get rid of.

Everyone knows how normal concern for one's health can turn into hypochondria, how a natural fear of danger threatens to turn into paranoia.

And now you become a regular visitor to medical forums, and thoughts about your health do not leave your head. Maybe you constantly think about danger while you are on the street. Or you can’t get out of your head the thought of what people think of you, although you yourself don’t see any point in thinking about it.

The conclusion I want to draw is that obsessive thoughts are based on emotions. Therefore, they do not have rational nature. Therefore, they cannot be fought with logic.

This is a very important conclusion. I have watched myself a lot, trying to understand how these thoughts appear and how they disappear, how my mind tries to deceive and confuse me. Earlier, in the evening, when I was very tired, I could not stop some thoughts.

For example, I could start thinking something bad about myself, blaming myself. No matter how skillful the inner lawyer turned out to be, who, using logic and common sense, tried to convince me that everything was not so bad (although of course he did not rule out problems), the blaming side always prevailed, and everything became even more complicated. The more I tried to justify myself and get rid of annoying thoughts with the help of thoughts, the more I became confused and more these thoughts overcame me. This sport with oneself led to the fact that the invisible knot was tightened even more.

The next day, in the morning, with a fresh mind, I didn’t even want to think about this problem. If I started to think about yesterday's "dialogue" with myself, then I understood that the problem was there, but it was greatly inflated and exaggerated by my condition. I realized that the problem needs to be solved, not thought about. There is no point in these thoughts.

After a while, I realized what the deceit and deceit of these thoughts are. If you try to destroy them with logic, they will still prevail, as they are irrational and illogical and make you believe in absurd ideas that common sense is powerless to overcome.

You Can't Eliminate Intrusive Thoughts with Logic

If you are set on self-blame, then you will continue to blame yourself, even if you have nothing to blame yourself for. Because this is your mood and it is from it that these thoughts arise, and not because of some real situation! Even if you suddenly manage to convince yourself for a moment of the groundlessness of these thoughts, then after a while they will return again if you resist them and continue to logically rebuff them.

If you are in such a mood that you think that you are sick, that something bad will happen to your health, then no positive test results will convince you otherwise. “What if the tests turned out to be inaccurate?”, “What if I have something else?” you will think.

And you will not see the end of these thoughts, no matter how absurd from the standpoint of common sense they are.

It is useless to try to refute them. Because it is impossible. They will come back and attack you with new absurd arguments that you will believe in because you are in such a state. emotional state, which gives rise to these thoughts about non-existent problems.

Remember the state when you are worried about something. No matter how you convince yourself that everything will be fine, that there is no reason to worry, your distorted nervous tension and the excitement of perception paints you a perspective in the darkest colors. Not because everything is really bad, but because you now perceive everything that way. If in this state you begin to think a lot and talk about the future, then your negative perception will attract your thoughts to the “negative” pole and it will be difficult to break out of this attraction.

How to get rid of obsessive thoughts

You will need common sense, but only at the very beginning.

First of all, you need to figure out if your obsessive thoughts are based on some real problem. It happens that mental chewing gum harasses you, exaggerating the problem. But an exaggerated problem does not mean the absence of one.

So think about what are the reasons for these thoughts. Getting rid of thoughts, you should not ignore the problem, if there is one. For example, it seems to you that you have some kind of illness and thoughts about it do not leave your mind.

Maybe these are really not groundless fears, and you have symptoms of some kind of disease. If so, go see a doctor. If you have already done this and you have not found anything - forget it.

Whether there is a problem or not, there is no point in thinking about it all the time! You either try to solve it if it exists, or you forget about everything if it does not exist.

This is the only moment in the fight against obsessive experiences in which you need to apply logic and common sense.

What to do?

Choose a moment in time when you are in the best morale, when you have more optimism and strength than usual. For example, in the morning when you are full of energy, after exercise or after.

Convince yourself that it makes no sense to scroll through the same thoughts thousands of times in your head. That these thoughts are deception or exaggeration, the purpose of which is to confuse you.

Be well aware of the following things

• you will not come to a solution to a problem if you constantly think about it
• obsessive thoughts have no rational basis, and if they are associated with some kind of problem, then you will solve it, instead of constantly returning thoughts to it
• you can’t get rid of mental gum with logical reasoning and thinking

Realize the absurdity of obsessive thoughts

Next you can once again, with the help of a few logical theses, to expose the absurdity of obsessive thoughts. For example: “I have nothing to fear, because the tests showed nothing”, “panic attacks do not die, I have read about this more than once”, “no one is trying to harm me”, “even if there really are things to be afraid of , do not think about them 1000 times a day, this will only lead to nervous exhaustion.

Your argument against obsessive thoughts should be clear and concise. You should not get involved in an argument with yourself. Remember, in a long dispute with obsessive thoughts, you are doomed to failure, in which emotions and fears will prevail over logic and mind, and negative perception itself will “pull” thoughts to the negative pole.

To destroy the force of this attraction, you need to think less. When you think about annoying thoughts, chew them endlessly, you only increase them.

Give yourself permission to ignore intrusive thoughts.

Tell yourself that you will no longer think about what you think about all day and what torments and torments you. Indeed, why constantly chew mental gum when it does not bring any sense?

An obsessive thought is the repetition of the same thought in different ways. You will not get any new and valuable information from it, you will not come to any decision.

Therefore, give yourself the installation not to get carried away by fruitless reflections. After you've said it to yourself, made a promise you won't break, draw an invisible line. After this trait, you no longer pay attention to intrusive thoughts.

Don't wait for thoughts to come back no more

They will return again and again. Tune in like this: "Let them come back, what's the difference, I realized that these thoughts are deception and do not relate to the real problem."

Thoughts will come back, sometimes you will again begin to untie this knot in your head. As soon as you notice that you are again carried away by this, smoothly divert your attention to the side. Do not argue with these thoughts, do not be upset that they have come (and they will come), ignore them, treat them with complete indifference.

If you suddenly need to remind yourself of the absurdity of these thoughts, do not go beyond short formulations: "nothing will happen to me, and that's it." Don't get involved in an argument you can never win. All the endless arguments that again make you afraid or nervous are lies and deceit.

Remember what I said in the article: if you are in a psychological state in which you tend to worry about your health or your future or your loved ones, then your mind will focus on this fear, no matter how absurd this fear is. . Don't turn your mind against yourself.

You must know the puzzle toy, which is like a tube. If you stick the index fingers of different hands into both ends of this tube and try to release them with the help of physical effort, pulling your hands in different directions, then nothing will come of it, the tube will only squeeze your fingers tighter. And if you relax and do not pull, everything will work out.

The same applies to intrusive thoughts. No need to want to get out of them by all means. Relax, "kill", let them be.

Be indifferent!

Your indifference to intrusive thoughts will deprive intrusive thoughts of their emotional content, which fills them with such power that you sometimes cannot control. Over time, you will learn to manage your attention and notice those moments when you again began to think about what you should not.

Then thoughts will leave you forever.

But there is no need to look forward to when this will happen: “when will they leave!”, “I try not to pay attention to them, but they still do not go out of my head!”. Such thoughts are not necessary!

Arm yourself with salutary indifference: thoughts do not bother you - it's good, they returned - that's also normal. No need to turn thoughts about the appearance of obsessive thoughts into obsessive thoughts!

It's no big deal that repetitive thoughts keep coming to you. If you've stripped them of their emotional "charge" and try to ignore them, then they don't get on your nerves like they used to. In this case, they become just an annoying notification window (you may have seen such windows on your computer) that appears in your head from time to time.

And it's not so scary anymore. You can live with this. Thoughts appear occasionally, but they no longer grab your attention or confuse you. They are just short signals in the head that come and go.

When I began to relate to obsessive thoughts in this way, they left my head and I learned to deal with them. BUT fighting intrusive thoughts is not fighting, if we perceive the struggle as a violent resistance. Relax!

Conclusion

I have already said in other articles that mental illnesses: panic attacks, obsessive thoughts can either break you down or make you stronger (as in the statement of a famous philosopher).

Dealing with panic attacks can teach you. Working on getting rid of depression will help you find the source of happiness in yourself. And trying to control obsessive thoughts will teach you to control your attention and control your mind.

Arm yourself with patience and work on yourself, then you will not only get rid of your ailments, but also gain valuable and useful experience as a result of this, which will be useful in your life!

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Bad thoughts in the head appear for a variety of reasons. They can sit in the subconscious for a long time and interfere with a normal life. Therefore, they must be driven away. Learn how to get rid of bad thoughts in several ways.

The impact of bad thoughts on life

Negative thoughts are very difficult to control. They interfere with rest, do not give rest even in a comfortable environment. This can lead to a deterioration not only in mental health, but also in physical health. A person becomes irritable, absent-minded, suspicious, quick-tempered, he develops more and more new diseases.

Also, constant thinking about the bad takes too much time. Although it could be spent on really important things. A person gets stuck in his experiences and does not move forward. Thoughts are material. Negative thoughts only attract troubles and realize fears.

"Do not take the bad in your head and heavy in your hands," - so they say among the people, and for good reason. The head must be freed from pessimistic thoughts, and one should not overload oneself with physical labor in order to maintain one's health. Yes, and bad thoughts always entail dire consequences. Therefore, it is imperative to get rid of the negative.

Causes of bad thoughts

Every anxiety has a source. It needs to be determined in order to understand how to proceed further. Very often, a negative story from the past interferes with life. A person experiences guilt (although it may be far-fetched) and constantly worries about it.

For other people, negativity becomes a character trait. They are also called complainers. They like to engage in self-digging and have been pessimists since childhood.

Negative personal qualities also poison life. It can be self-doubt, in which any event or decision becomes a test. In the same vein, suspiciousness can be considered. Anything can put anxiety in such a person’s head, from a news report to a conversation of random passers-by.

Of course, real problems that a person cannot solve can also become a source. Waiting for the outcome just makes you nervous, drawing not the most optimistic layouts in your head.

But religion in its own way explains why bad thoughts are constantly in the head. It is believed that the cause of obsessions and experiences is an unclean force, demons. They need to be fought in an unconventional way - prayer.

Consider a few techniques that psychologists advise using when bad thoughts appear.

calculation

The first step to solving a problem is to understand what is causing the concern. The reasons can be very deep, so it is better to visit a psychologist. But you can try to cope on your own. To do this, on a piece of paper you need to write in two columns all your fears: real and fictional, and then opposite each one - his decision, that is, what needs to be done so that anxiety does not come true.

For example, how to get rid of bad thoughts about an open window or an open stove? Double-check this action before leaving the house every time.

Solution

Often, negative thoughts come from unresolved issues. If you can find a way out of the situation, then you need to act. Bad thoughts about the problem will go away as soon as it is solved. But, unfortunately, many are often accustomed to complaining and doing nothing to change the situation. If you are reading this article, then this is not about you. You are definitely ready to act, and you will succeed. You just need to identify the source of the anxiety.

Adoption

Not all problems are solvable, sometimes nothing depends on the person. For example, a relative or friend is in the hospital and is fighting for his life. In such a situation, it is perfectly normal to be worried. The way out is to accept negative thoughts. You need to realize what you are really experiencing, and this is not unusual.

Bad thoughts creep into your head? Accept them and live with them. But you do not need to give them free rein, otherwise they will master the behavior. It is better, as it were, to observe negative messages from the outside, without a subsequent reaction to them. The essence of this technique is action, not savoring thoughts. So do what you can and leave the rest to chance.

Removal and replacement

For this method, you need a little awareness and understanding of your emotions. As soon as you feel that negativity appears in your head, then immediately remove it, as if throwing garbage into a bucket. You need to try not to get hung up on thoughts, not to develop this topic, but try to forget about it. The best assistant in this matter will be substitution. The point is that you need to start thinking about something pleasant, positive or at least neutral.

With this technique, there is no need to figure out how to get rid of bad thoughts. They are not fed, but replaced by other events. Each time it will get easier and better. And after some time, consciousness will begin to use this method automatically.

Postponement

No wonder they say that the morning is wiser than the evening. Sometimes it's best to postpone your thoughts until later. For example, if you can't sleep because of bad thoughts, promise yourself that you will definitely think about it tomorrow. If the problem is not particularly serious, then the brain will easily agree with this proposal. FROM highly likely in the morning, the negative will no longer worry and will even resolve itself.

This is a very simple but effective technique. It can be applied in many situations. It makes no sense to think about what will become insignificant in the future. Realizing this, it is much easier to throw the negative out of your head. For serious problems, this method is not suitable. It is better for them to find solutions.

suppression

Imperceptibly, bad thoughts appeared in my head, what to do then? It is necessary to suppress the desire to be upset as quickly as possible in order not to develop an unpleasant topic. To do this, you need to put aside all your affairs, count to thirty and take five deep exhalations and inhalations. The brain needs time to comprehend the subject of thought, so as not to draw irrational conclusions and unreasonable actions.

If the anxiety is still not gone, then repeat all the steps. If possible, get out of the room and take a short walk. This will allow you to put your thoughts in order and even distract from the negative.

Bringing to the point of absurdity

You can try the exact opposite technique. On the contrary, you need to completely immerse yourself in bad thoughts and consider what such a bad thing can happen as a result. It is most effective to represent the most Connect the imagination, use exaggeration, make thoughts vivid.

For example, you need to pass an important interview. It is clear that many at such moments are visited by bad thoughts. Imagine in colors what kind of failure can expect. The head of the personnel department, as soon as he sees your resume, starts shouting loudly and throwing tomatoes. You decide to escape from such a shame and run out of the office. But then the cleaner throws a wet rag at you, because you trampled the entire floor. From surprise, you fall, get up and run again. And then you are abducted by aliens and taken to another planet.

Absurd, isn't it? But it is precisely this exaggeration that robs negative thoughts of power. One has only to try to be convinced of the effectiveness of the technique.

Formulation on paper

Psychologists also recommend putting all your bad thoughts on paper. You need to write them down in detail, in all colors and details. The more often we formulate experiences, the less often we return to them. So, they will worry less and less. Bad thoughts put on paper should be considered a passed stage, so the sheet can be torn or burned.

Sometimes it's more efficient not to destroy records. In some situations, it is better to fill in two columns on the sheet - negative and positive thoughts, in order to compare them later. The first is negative experiences. And in the second - pleasant. It can also be some positive attitude. For example, "I'm smart", "I'm good at my job", "I'm a great wife" and so on.

You can only write down your own good qualities and place it in a conspicuous place (on the desktop or in the bathroom). As soon as bad thoughts appear, immediately look at this list to remind yourself of the good.

Positive social circle

Pay attention to the people around you. Think about whether there are those among acquaintances and friends that cause negative thoughts. If you count even a few such people, then you should not blame yourself and upset yourself even more. Whatever was true reason behavior, relationships with these people are harmful to mental health. Experts recommend temporarily avoiding these personalities. If during this period your mood and well-being improved, then it would be better to end the relationship with them.

You should not hold on to people who constantly insult, ridicule, do not respect your hobbies and time. Let it be better for you to have one friend, but a positive one, and you don’t have to think about how to remove bad thoughts. Cheerful people always bring back good memories, cheer up and charge with positive energy.

There are also universal ways that perfectly help to cope with bad thoughts. Psychologists also recommend actively using them. They bring feelings into balance with mild anxiety, and in more complex cases, they only enhance the effect of the above techniques. Their main mechanism is distraction. Perhaps, these methods will be familiar to many from personal practice.

positive music

Scientific research has proven that you can drown out bad thoughts with the help of a pleasant melody. Therefore, determine for yourself the best music channel or wave on the radio, and also create a playlist of positive songs in your gadget. As soon as you feel that disturbing thoughts penetrate your mind, turn on loud music and cheer yourself up.

A favorite hobby or some business will help to distract from fears and anxieties. It can be any activity that brings pleasure (dancing, singing, cycling, needlework, reading books, growing flowers, and more).

Some get rid of stupid thoughts with dirty work - cleaning the house. They start washing dishes, floors, dusting, cleaning cupboards and so on. Unloved business will brighten up, of course, positive music. So bad thoughts will receive a double blow and disappear in one moment.

Physical exercise

Sport is a great way to get rid of bad thoughts. Physical activity relieves adrenaline, unloads nervous system so it's a good stress reliever. In addition, with regular exercises, a beautiful toned body will be a pleasant bonus. Such psychological relief, combined with the awareness of one's attractiveness, increases self-confidence and reduces the number of reasons for concern. Just don't overload yourself too much. Do not forget about moderation and good rest, so as not to leave room for negative experiences.

Proper nutrition

It is drink and food that give us the resources and strength to exist. An unbalanced diet, hunger or lack of fluids deplete the body and lead to fatigue. It is she who creates the conditions for experiences even on a minor occasion. Therefore, it is important to eat healthy food and drink healthy drinks (fruit drinks, freshly squeezed juices, compotes, green tea and clean water). In moments of sadness, it is worth pampering yourself with food antidepressants: chocolate, raisins, bananas, hazelnuts and what you yourself love. Psychologists say that delicious food also drives away bad thoughts.

Appeal to God

Prayer helps religious people get rid of bad thoughts. Only sincere conversion will become a powerful weapon in the fight against impure forces. Prayer will establish an energetic connection with the deity and drive away internal demons. Only here the moment of humility with what is happening is important, if certain circumstances do not suit you. If despair or despondency has become a problem, then higher powers should be addressed with gratitude. If you are offended or angry at another person, you should forgive him yourself and mention his pardon in prayer.

It is not necessary to know well-known texts to get help from higher powers. It is enough to sincerely turn and express everything in your own words, then you will definitely be heard.

Now you know how to get rid of bad thoughts if they visit you. You can use psychological techniques, universal techniques or prayer if you are a religious person.