The Contortionist Mind – How To Untangle From Negative Thinking

The Contortionist Mind- How To Untangle From Negative Thinking

If you’ve ever seen a contortionist willfully twist his body into a pretzel, you’ve probably been awestruck. Like a contortionist, the mind (structurally known as the brain) can bend, stretch, twist and turn in many incredible directions. We use it to think, foreshadow, plan, create, and reminisce about the past. We use our minds to solve complex problems, experience deep emotions, and feel compassion for others.

However, the workings of our minds don’t always bring positive results. Just like a contortionist who doesn’t take proper steps to keep his body extremely strong and limber, our minds can lead us to painful experiences, causing us to doubt, worry, ruminate, contemplate danger when there is none, and stir up feelings of hatred, jealousy, and envy. Our minds can play tricks on us, leading us to distort the truth, go into denial, and even manipulate others for personal gain. Hence, while the mind can bring us happiness and bliss, it can also lead us to misery and despair.

So how do you work with your contortionist mind to create a better inner world for yourself? Try the following tips:

1. Don’t allow negative thoughts to twist you into a knot. A thought is just a thought unless you give it fuel through action. For example, thinking about slashing your ex-boyfriend’s tires because you found out he was cheating on you is not the same as actually doing it.
2. Bend negative thoughts into positive ones and take action toward those. For instance, using the example of the tires above, change your thought to “I don’t need to waste time dwelling on an old boyfriend’s behavior.” Then take steps to grieve your loss and create a new dating strategy.
3. Don’t summersault into catastrophic thinking. Our anxiety can take us from A to Z in a split second if we travel down the “what if” highway of life. Instead replace “what-if” thinking with “what-else” thinking. For example, let’s say you get a flat tire and will be late for work. Instead of pondering the notion that you will surely get fired and then never work again, yada yada, replace the thought with the idea that probably your boss will understand as long as you give him/her a heads up and don’t become a perpetual excuse-giver.
4. If you hyperextend into fear, trust that you will be able to pull through and handle what’s in front of you. Our bodies are equipped with fight-flight-freeze response. So it’s better to save your survival instincts for occasions where true danger strikes and not waste energy on imagined danger when there is none. Otherwise you’re revving up your nervous system for nothing and ultimately causing yourself unnecessary stress.
5. Stretch toward the future with positive beliefs. How often do the things you worry about actually come true? Probably not many–unless you’re truly psychic. Hence, it’s far better to believe good things will come to you. Mind you, this is not a directive for practicing denial or self-deception. Rather, it’s simply an encouragement to deal with what’s right in front of you. It is in the present where you ultimately have control, not in the past or in the future.
6. Practice mental flexibility. While contortionists often have an innate ability to maneuver their bodies in unusual ways, they too must stretch and continually build and maintain good muscle strength. Do not let your mind stay idle. Challenge yourself to think about things in different ways, stretch your comfort zones and always be open to filling up your toolbox of coping mechanisms with new behaviors and actions. For instance, if you tend to be a passive person, work on developing assertiveness.
7. Strengthen your body with healthy nutrition and exercise. The workings of our minds are dependent on the wellness of our bodies. We cannot have a healthy mind without a healthy body. So don’t skimp on taking good care of your physical wellbeing and your mind will thank you!