Three ways to get in to helpful thinking

And so we're a month in to the new year already. Whilst you were contemplating your New Year’s resolutions in the run up to 1 January 2015, did you consider doing something that is without a shelf life? Did you have a ponder on some of your thinking styles?

It's easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of life and people forget about themselves but why not prioritise something that (unlike most resolutions) is going to last forever…Your mind! 

Often in times of stress or low mood we can begin thinking in a way that is unhelpful for us and this just keeps us in a cycle of anxiety or sometimes low mood.

Three ways to get into helpful thinking are: 

• 1)      Spot unhelpful thinking in its tracks and challenge the thought!

It often feels strange to get into a habit of challenging thoughts as “I’m thinking them so they must be true right??” Not always! Sometimes we can be believing things (generally negative) about ourselves that are just not true, get into a habit of challenging those thoughts and trying to wheedle out the truth.

• 2)      Be in the moment!

Often we make ourselves so busy that we forget to be in the moment and enjoy! All the efforts we put in to making life meaningful can sometimes mean we forget to just… be. Sometimes we can be too busy worrying about the future or caught up in the past, try and shift your attention to the here and now so as not to miss out on the current.

• 3)      Try and let go of worries that we can’t affect.

Often we are worrying about things that may never or have never happened, often they are based in the future and we have no control over them. Think about the time and energy it costs you to think about something you have no effect on, think of all the things you could be doing in the here and now and attempt to make a shift to doing something that really matters to you!

Here’s to a year of HELPFUL thinking!! 

Aimee Robinson, Low Intensity Worker in Leeds IAPT