Woke up this morning in a sunny disposition
but then read my email, the forecast, news highlights and social media.
Truly, we are bombarded daily with thoughts that are not of our own making:
- Am I safe?
- Am I lovable?
- Do I matter?
How we handle these thoughts is critical to our mental and physical health. What options do we really have?
Below are two excerpts that have helped me better understand where many thoughts come from and how they may affect us.
How Many Ads Do We See Daily?
“It is estimated that an adult in a metropolitan area may see anywhere from 50 to 400 advertisements per day1. Digital marketing experts estimate that most Americans are exposed to around 4,000 to 10,000 ads each day2. Folks from marketing firm Yankelovich, Inc. estimate that the average modern person is exposed to around 5,000 ads per day3. An average modern individual is estimated to see 300-700 ad messages per day4. thedrum.com
Rehearsing Suffering
A major obstacle … is the tendency of our mind to get stuck in negative thinking. The mind “rehearses” the scenarios that bother us, ultimately because it wants to resolve the problem and to find a way out. Unfortunately, it may get stuck … repeating the same track ceaselessly.
The mind has been likened to a search engine—you (start with one) thought and it gives you other thoughts related to it. (For example,) if we keep harboring hateful thoughts—even if we don’t act on them—they may lead to more hate and violence. …
Everything we routinely do can be understood as practicing and rehearsing. … In neuroscience, it is known that neurons that “fire together wire together.” ….
When you do or say something negatively the first time, you may feel bad about it, but the second time it may already feel less unsettling. You may tell yourself “You’re not worthy,” — the first time you do it, it is a shock. But the second time you may feel less bad. And then the behavior may become a habit. Every time you get angry, you punch the wall. It can become uncontrollable. A habit becomes a personality, which then determines the course of your life and destiny. …
For those who tend to be gloomy and in despair easily, compounded with the suffering of the past, our habitual mood makes it even more difficult to handle and transform the situation. … It takes a lot of courage to release and let go of our negativity.”
Excerpt adapted from Flowers in the Dark: Reclaiming Your Power to Heal Trauma through Mindfulness by Sister Dang Nghiem © 2021 by Sister Dang Nghiem. Reprinted in arrangement with Parallax Press. For the full article see: tricycle.org/article/sister-dang-nghiem-suffering/
What are you thinking today?
Life Matters 