Break the Grip of Rumination

Rumination happens when you go over and over negative thoughts and feelings. You examine them from every angle. You question them. Though you may well intend to “think this thing through,” you don’t really get anywhere. Instead, your thinking gets stuck in a rut of endless questions, and you quickly become overwhelmed and demoralized. You’re not certain you’ll ever find the answers you seek.

This way of thinking fans the flames of negativity. That’s because when you ruminate you see everything through the distorted lens of negativity. And negativity doesn’t play fair. It doesn’t allow you to think straight or see the big picture. Studies show that when people experience negative emotions, they selectively call to mind negative thoughts. That’s simply the way our brain works: we create a chain of thoughts that are linked by their negative tone. So, when you ruminate, you dredge up thoughts that only add fuel to the fire of your negativity. And because negative emotions narrowed, negative thinking feed on each other, they drag you down…

Before you can think straight about the situation you’re facing, you need to put the brakes on the downward spiral you’re in…Fortunately, there are scientifically tested way to do so…

As with many things, the first step is awareness. You need to be able to spot the damaging cycle of rumination when it’s happening…

What seems to help most is any form of healthy distraction. Go for a jog. Swim in the ocean. Fix your bike. Lift weights at the gym...What you’re looking to do is lift your mood…Once you’re off the slippery downward slope of negativity, you’ll have eyes clear enough to dispute negative thinking…

Unhealthy  Distractions

Many people try to numb their excessive ruminations with alcohol or drugs. In fact, people who have a high tendency to ruminate are at high risk for alcohol abuse. Food can be another unhealthy distraction. Some people use food to escape painful self-awareness, which can lead to bingeing and other problematic forms of emotional eating…

Fredrickson, F. Barbara: Positivity: Top-notch research reveals the  3-to-1 ratio that will change your life. New York: Three Rivers Press, 2009. p.163-166.

Dream about your Future

Another simple way to boost your positivity is to dream frequently about your future. Conjure up the best possible outcomes for yourself. Visualize your future successes in great detail. People who are assigned at random to carry out such an exercise show reliable increases in their positivity relative to those who carry out more mundane self-reflections. Although it’s not yet clear how visualization works, one suggestion is that it gives you insight into how your everyday goals and motives fit into your dreams about your future. This may well help you extract more goodness out of your daily activities. Strikingly, visualization has been shown to activate the same brain areas as actually carrying out those same visualized actions. That’s why visualization has been such a powerful tool for winning athletes. Mental practice can perhaps be just as effective as physical practice. At the very least, it’s a positive and energizing complement. Visualization may work especially well if you have long-range projects, such as getting an education, writing a book, or building community.

Fredrickson, F. Barbara: Positivity: Top-notch research reveals the  3-to-1 ratio that will change your life. New York: Three Rivers Press, 2009. p.189.

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