Why it’s a bad idea to try to ‘get rid’ of your negative thoughts

Do you have to attempt to eliminate your ideas? It is a query I get requested alot once I’m educating retreats and programs, so I’m going to speak you thru the clear, evidence-based reply to that query and provide the lowdown concerning the analysis on thought suppression.

On this episode of Mentally Stronger, I clarify what the analysis says about thought suppression and discover some methods that can assist you acquire extra management over your ideas and develop into extra resilient. Maintain studying to be taught extra or press play on the podcast beneath.

What is assumed suppression?

What do you do when you may have destructive ideas? Do you attempt to eliminate them? Do you attempt to push them out of your thoughts and placed on a cheerful face? It is a actually widespread technique individuals use to deal with undesirable ideas and recollections.

All of us attempt to regulate our ideas and feelings indirectly. However a phrase of warning: not all methods of regulating ideas are equal. In reality, some are literally extra dangerous than useful. 

Thought suppression suits into that dangerous class. That’s why I wish to take you thru the analysis on this and why this technique will not be solely ineffective, but additionally actually unhealthy in your psychological and emotional wellbeing. 

So, what precisely is assumed suppression? It’s the try to push away, ignore, and eliminate undesirable ideas. 

The white bear impact

In 1863, Russian author Dostoevsky wrote an essay that might gas the analysis on thought suppression a few years later. In his essay, “Winter Notes on Summer time Impressions”, he challenged the reader:

“Attempt to pose for your self this activity: not to think about a white bear, and you will note that the cursed factor will come to thoughts each minute.”

Over a century later, social psychologist Daniel Wegner learn Dostoevsky’s essay and was intrigued by this problem. It rang true in his personal expertise, so he determined to analysis thought suppression to see if the analysis would show it proper. 

Would individuals achieve success in retaining ideas of a white bear at bay after they tried to take action? 

Wegner and his group requested a gaggle of scholars to do precisely what Dostoyevsky had challenged the readers of his essay to do – attempt arduous not to think about a white bear. For 5 minutes, the scholars reported all of their ideas verbally whereas making an attempt not to think about a white bear. If a white bear got here to thoughts, they needed to ring a bell. 

Then, they have been instructed to think about a white bear as a lot as they needed for an additional 5 minutes and to maintain ringing the bell at any time when they did. 

What occurred subsequent has since develop into some of the extensively replicated occurrences within the area of psychology. The scholars who had been making an attempt to keep away from all ideas of a white bear couldn’t do it. On common, they both stated the phrases or reported interested by the bear greater than as soon as per minute. 

Later, after they have been advised to think about the bear, they skilled a big rebound impact, mentioning it way more usually than every other management group.

Why eliminating ideas doesn’t work

By this sequence of experiments and lots of extra to observe, Wegner recognized a phenomenon he known as ‘ironic error’. This meant that the extra forcefully you attempt to push ideas away, the louder they develop into and the longer they keep round and repeat themselves. 

In different phrases, if you attempt to suppress your ideas, you really get extra of them than if you happen to didn’t attempt to suppress them within the first place. 

The ironic error can also be one of many causes that people who smoke who’re making an attempt to stop and take a look at desperately not to consider smoking will consistently be tortured by photographs of lighting up. It’s why individuals on a food regimen who attempt not to think about meals will get an inflow of psychological photographs of chips and doughnuts.

The phenomenon might be not that massive a shock to many individuals. We’ve in all probability all skilled this rebound impact of thought suppression first-hand. 

Have you ever ever tried not to think about that ex-girlfriend or boyfriend, however then you’ll be able to’t get them out of your thoughts? Or have you ever tried to push away a giant situation you don’t wish to take care of that’s bothering you, after which, rapidly, you end up having an indignant outburst over it?

Why do we now have this ironic error?

Suppressing a thought is tough work in your thoughts. One a part of the mind tries to suppress the thought, however one other a part of your mind has to consistently monitor your psychological exercise for these ‘forbidden ideas’. It’s consistently checking – is there a white bear wherever round right here? And within the means of doing that, it brings all of it up. 

Not solely that, however this course of is extremely fatiguing for the mind. So if you’re doing it again and again, it will probably develop into fairly a downward spiral. In reality, research have proven that suppressing ideas and feelings endangers your wellbeing, each bodily and psychologically. 

The hurt of ongoing thought suppression

Thought suppression can also be discovered to be a key contributor to psychological sicknesses equivalent to melancholy, nervousness dysfunction, panic assaults, obsessive-compulsive dysfunction, and power stress. 

If we attempt to handle our traumatic ideas by avoiding them or pushing them down, it should probably backfire, and as a substitute of much less stress, we get extra stress. If we attempt to handle our depressive ideas by eliminating them, we are going to probably get extra melancholy. 

There’s a big body of evidence exhibiting that scientific melancholy, nervousness, and stress are all actually unhealthy in your well being, and thought suppression is the right street to take you there.

So, because it turned out, Dostoyevsky was proper. If we attempt to keep away from interested by a white bear, the cursed factor will certainly pop into our minds greater than ever.

Extra mentally sturdy methods to manage ideas

So how can we be taught to manage ideas in additional skilful, empowering, and efficient methods? 

Studying to manage ideas can take a little bit of care and observe. However it may be realized with research-backed methods. Listed here are two issues that you are able to do to manage your destructive or undesirable ideas.

1. Enable and confront the ideas

It might look like a little bit of a paradox, however some of the efficient issues you are able to do when having undesirable ideas is to acknowledge the thought, enable it, and confront it. 

Mindfulness meditation is one of the simplest ways that can assist you to develop the abilities to do that ongoing, however one technique you can begin to make use of on-the-go in on a regular basis life is to mentally observe your ideas. 

So, if in case you have a repeating thought you already know isn’t useful, you’ll be able to say to your self, “ahhh it’s the you’re-not-good-enough story once more.” Or it would sound one thing like, “right here’s the your-partner’s-going-to-leave-you thought once more” or “the-world-is-falling-apart one is right here once more.” 

Strive to do that with a way of humour and playfulness. 

After you identify the story, merely convey your focus again to what you have been doing within the current second. 

This may increasingly sound unusual, however if you cease making an attempt to suppress your ideas and absolutely acknowledge them and permit and confront them, you create some psychological distance from them. You unhook from the thought so to talk, and it’s like breaking a spell. You possibly can immediately discover that it’s merely a thought, not actuality. It’s a psychological occasion, a little bit of language that’s transferring by your consciousness. One thing that arises and passes away. This takes the cost out of the thought and it loses its energy to pull you into emotional reactivity.

So as a substitute of working from the bear in our thoughts and combating it, we’re more likely to grasp that it’s not as highly effective or scary as we as soon as thought. 

2. Refocus your thoughts

The second factor that has been proven to work successfully is studying to refocus your thoughts on extra useful issues. So, there are two methods you might do that. 

Slightly than making an attempt to push away undesirable ideas, you’ll be able to actively begin to consider one thing else that’s extra nourishing. The research does show that this is more effective than thought suppression. You can take into consideration how grateful you might be for sure features of life, actions you’d prefer to take to enhance your scenario, and even simply one other object of consideration like a dolphin as a substitute of a white bear.

One other method you are able to do that is to focus your consideration on the current second and what you’re sensing proper now, like the sensation of your breath, the sound of the birds out the window, or the sensation of your physique resting on a chair. It is a actually calming and satisfying observe.

Analysis reveals these are more practical methods to manage any undesirable, disagreeable, or distressing ideas. 

To recap, thought suppression doesn’t make the ideas go away, it simply makes them rebound and are available again even stronger, inflicting extra misery. So as a substitute, attempt acknowledging the ideas, identify them, or refocus your thoughts on one thing extra useful and nourishing. 

In order finest you’ll be able to, attempt to let go of thought suppression as a result of it’s a behavior that can sap your psychological energy, and as a substitute attempt these extra useful methods of coping with troublesome ideas. See what impact it has in your physique, thoughts, and in your life.