What are negative or intrusive thoughts?
Negative thoughts can creep into your mind like a persistent drizzle, leaving you feeling unsettled and weighed down. In today’s fast-paced world, these thoughts can become overwhelming, casting a shadow over your day-to-day life. Whether it’s self-doubt or worries about the future, these negative patterns are more common than you might realise. They can make even the simplest tasks feel daunting, draining your energy and clouding your happiness.
Sometimes, these negative thoughts take on a more intense form, known as intrusive thoughts. These sudden, unsettling thoughts can strike out of nowhere, like a heavy downpour, leaving you anxious and uneasy. Intrusive thoughts often accompany conditions such as anxiety, social anxiety, and depression, feeding off one another like gathering storm clouds.
However, it’s important to know that negative and intrusive thoughts can be managed. Recognising these patterns is the first step. With the right support and techniques, you can navigate through the storm and find calmer, brighter days ahead.
Around 80% of our thoughts are negative
Negative thinking has been linked with more rapid cognitive decline
Negative thoughts and rumination are linked to depression, affecting 70% of those with it
Negative thoughts are a primary symptom for 80% of those with GAD, causing excessive worry and stress
What causes negative thoughts?
Negative thoughts often stem from overthinking, past regrets, or harsh self-criticism. These patterns can be particularly difficult for new mothers, who may face hormonal changes and societal pressures that heighten anxiety and low mood.
Common triggers include overanalysing decisions, dwelling on past mistakes, fear of the future, and self-blame. Social anxiety frequently fuels these thoughts, making individuals overly critical of themselves and overly concerned with others’ opinions. Those experiencing conditions like OCD, anxiety disorders, or depression may be especially vulnerable to these cycles of negative thinking.
Understanding the roots of your negative thoughts is crucial for addressing them. By exploring the connections between anxiety, self-perception, and negative thinking, you can begin to break the cycle and take steps towards a healthier mindset.
The impact of living with negative thoughts
Daily Life Strain: Negative thoughts can quickly take over, making even simple tasks feel overwhelming. They erode your confidence, strain your relationships, and leave you feeling disconnected from the things and people you care about. When negativity dominates your thinking, it can be hard to enjoy life or connect with others, creating a cycle that feels difficult to escape.
Mental and Physical Health: The effects of negative thinking aren’t limited to your mind. Persistent negativity can contribute to anxiety, depression, and even physical health issues like high blood pressure, headaches, and difficulty recovering from illness. Recognising these impacts is an important step in understanding how closely linked your thoughts and overall health are.
Self-Talk and Mental Health: Your inner dialogue, or self-talk, shapes how you view yourself and the world. Negative self-talk can fuel anxiety disorders, depression, and PTSD, making it harder to cope with life’s challenges. Over time, this can distort your perspective, leading to feelings of helplessness and hopelessness.
Patterns of Negative Thinking: Negative thoughts often follow specific patterns—black-and-white thinking, filtering out the positives, and catastrophising are common examples. These thought patterns can lead to physical symptoms like insomnia, chest pain, and fatigue. Recognising and challenging these patterns is key to improving your mental and physical well-being.
How can it be managed?
Mindfulness: Mindfulness is an effective way to manage negative thinking by keeping your focus on the present moment, rather than getting stuck in regrets about the past or worries about the future. Start with small steps, like focusing on your breathing or paying attention to your surroundings. As you practise, mindfulness can help you create space between yourself and your negative thoughts.
Meditation: Meditation allows you to observe your thoughts without becoming entangled in them. By practising meditation regularly, you can learn to let go of negative thoughts more easily, gaining clarity and perspective.
Journaling: Writing down your thoughts helps to take away their power. By identifying patterns in your thinking, you can start to challenge and change the way you react to negative thoughts.
Gratitude Practice: Shifting your focus towards gratitude can help balance out negative thinking. Take time each day to reflect on the positive aspects of your life, no matter how small they may seem. This shift in perspective can improve your mood and overall outlook.
Self-Compassion: Treat yourself with kindness and understanding, especially when negative thoughts arise. Practise speaking to yourself as you would to a close friend, offering support and reassurance. Don’t hesitate to reach out to trusted friends or family when you need extra support.
Exercise: Regular physical activity can boost your mood and help manage stress by releasing endorphins. Whether it’s a brisk walk, yoga, or time spent outdoors, incorporating movement into your routine can be a powerful antidote to negativity.
Challenging Cognitive Distortions: Cognitive distortions are irrational thoughts that often lead to negative thinking. Challenge these thoughts by questioning whether they are based on facts or assumptions. Getting another person’s perspective can also help you see things more clearly and break free from distorted thinking.
How can hypnotherapy help?
Solution Focused Hypnotherapy offers a gentle yet effective approach to managing negative thinking by accessing the subconscious mind. Through hypnosis, you can uncover the root causes of your negative thoughts, such as past trauma or deeply held beliefs. Addressing these underlying issues helps break the cycle of negativity and fosters healthier, more positive thinking patterns.
Deep Relaxation: Hypnotherapy helps you enter a state of deep relaxation, reducing the mental noise that often fuels negative thoughts. This calm state allows your mind to reset, making it easier to let go of negativity and embrace more positive thoughts. Typically, 6 to 12 sessions are recommended to achieve lasting results, with each session building on the previous one.
Personalised Support: A trained Solution Focused Hypnotherapist provides tailored guidance to help you overcome negative thinking. Each session is designed to meet your unique needs, offering a safe and supportive environment for exploring the root causes of your negative thoughts.
Long-Lasting Positive Change: The changes achieved through hypnotherapy often lead to long-lasting improvements in your mental well-being. By accessing your subconscious mind, you can develop a more positive outlook on life, helping you feel more in control of your thoughts and emotions.
Our Negative Thoughts Specialists
Benn Baker-Pollard
Sittingbourne
Carmen Harrington
Market Harborough
Caroline Prout
Thrapston
Chris Johannes
Spalding
Claire Noyelle
Maidstone East
Dawn Ibbetson
Chelmsford
Gary Johannes
Peterborough
Jill Whitehouse
Newcastle upon Tyne
Keeley Smith
Southend-on-Sea
Kerry Seymour
Weston-super-Mare
Peter Ely
Islington
Victoria Anderson
Sunderland
Why Choose Inspired To Change
Our solution focused hypnotherapists empower you to better understand your brain, helping to guide you towards solutions and achieve the outcomes you want. We have a team of fully trained hypnotherapists, giving you the choice of who to work with and how you want to work with them. Solution focused hypnotherapy is just as effective in-person or online in the comfort of your own home, so you can find the ideal therapist to help you reach your goals.
Every one of our hypnotherapists is recognised by governing bodies like the National Council for Hypnotherapy, the UK’s leading not-for-profit hypnotherapy professional association. They have all trained with Clifton Practice Hypnotherapy Training, one of the leading hypnotherapy schools in the UK.
