Mold Your Mind

Most of us have thoughts that pull at us. We know they are not healthy – whether it is a memory, topic (i.e. ex boy/girlfriend) or the content (i.e. negative self-talk ‘I’m so stupid.’) and yet the pull is there. It’s overly simplistic to say ‘don’t think about that‘. The more realistic approach is to visit that thought briefly. The danger is when we ruminate/live there, indulging the pull, making no effort to resist or disengage. Allow yourself to visit thought areas – it is like allowing yourself to have two cookies, not the whole bag. 

How to Fill the Space

Sometimes when we recognize recurring, intrusive thought patterns are unhealthy it can take a major effort to uproot this. The best way I have found is to fill the space with healthy, uplifting content through audiobooks or podcasts. The key is that these need to build up, improve your mental health and outlook. Yes, this is a filler, but without intention the filler can be just as damaging as our thoughts.

Suggested Materials

My favorite podcast to recommend is The Life Coach School by Brooke Castillo. Her philosophies regarding mental health are similar to my own which means this is a great between session reinforcement for my clients. I could make book recommendations all day long, but just a few to get started with are:

• The Gifts of Imperfection by Brene Brown (or anything by her)
• Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents by Lindsay Gibson
• When Things Fall Apart by Pema Chodron
• The Four Tendencies by Gretchen Rubin.