I'm going to be posting a series of articles on the power of positive thinking. What I'm presenting here are not my original ideas (see sources at end) but scientifically proven strategies for helping you to think more positively in the New Year and beyond. Here is a brief outline on the upcoming posts:
What’s the big Secret to Life?
Your Thoughts ….............................................
..........................Affect Your Feelings …........................
.............................................................Which Become your Life!
So how do you enhance positive thoughts?
You have to Kill the ANTs…by feeding your emotional ANTeater
What are ANTs?
Automatic Negative Thoughts
- Your thoughts are REAL, and they have a real impact on how you feel and how you behave.
- When you have a thought, your brain releases chemicals which create an electrical transmission across your brain. You then become aware of what you’re thinking.
- Negative thoughts adversely affect your body and your overall health.
- Positive thoughts beneficially affect your body and your overall health.
- Bad thoughts are toxic to your brain and poisonous to your body. You can train your thoughts to be positive and hopeful, or you can allow them to be negative and upset you.
- Sometimes your thoughts will lie to you. It’s important to check them before you believe them.
- To counteract your Automatic Negative Thoughts you need to TALK BACK TO THEM! When you talk back to your ANTs you feed your emotional ANTeater.
ANT 1 "Always/Never Thinking"
ANT 2 "Focusing on the Negative"
ANT 3 "Fortune-Telling"
ANT 4 "Mind Reading"
ANT 5 "Thinking with your Feelings"
ANT 6 "Guilt Beating" (Should statements)
ANT 7 "Time Traveling"
ANT 8 "Labeling and Mislabeling"
ANT 9 "Personalizing"
ANT 10 "Blaming"
Sources:
Change Your Brain Change Your Life by Daniel Amen, M.D.
Making a Good Brain Great by Daniel Amen, M.D.
Feeling Good by David Burns, M.D.
The Secret by Rhonda Byrne
The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale
The Bible by God
