Free Yourself from "Stinkin' Thinkin'"

April 29, 2020

How to Kick Stinkin' Thinkin' out of your life

Common errors in thinking, or what we like to call Stinkin' Thinkin', are unhealthy or irrational thoughts that can create barriers to being your most vibrant self. While there are over 50 types, here are a few of the most common ones:

Personalization (The world revolves around me. If someone doesn't call me back "they hate me", not that they possibly could be busy),

All-or-Nothing thinking ("I cannot lose weight so why even try to eat healthy or exercise".),

Mind-Reading (Making assumptions about what people's perceptions are about you),

Fortune Telling (aka. self-fulfilling prophecy-your belief becomes true because you have ultimately brainwashed yourself into making it a reality),

Overgeneralization (You fail one test, so you will fail all tests in the future or you label yourself a "failure"), Catastrophizing (Having no valid evidence to back up your beliefs..."I lost my job, so I will never be employed again".),

Filtering out the Positive (Only seeing things in a negative light), and my favorite

"Shoulding on Yourself" ("I should have..." you fill in the blank:). You don't have to memorize or identify which error in thinking you are experiencing to help kick them out of your life, but awareness into when you are doing so is key to fight the nasty bugs out of your head!

Again the body and mind are so resilient and can combat these thoughts to help improve your overall mood and well-being. This world is facing a lot of uncertainty at this time, and you may find yourself engaging in some, if not all of these distortions (i.e. "I will never find a job again"; "I can never go out to eat again or do my normal activities"). It is perfectly healthy and normal to validate your emotion and situation (i.e. "This is very scary/difficult/sad to be uncertain where I will get a job at".) But it's the next step that individuals get stuck with. Many focus on or ruminate over the thought and emotion instead of disputing the belief.

Asking yourself these three questions will help you to identify if your thought/belief is rational:

1) Is my thinking based on fact?

2) Is my thinking helping me feel the way that I want to?

3) Is my thinking helping me achieve my goals?

If you get a no answer to any of these, you are experiencing an Irrational belief.

Let's go back to that friend that didn't call you back. Automatic thought "My friend didn't call me back so she must find me annoying or maybe I did something wrong? Ugh whatever... she's such a brat!" (What's the evidence that you did something wrong or are you really annoying?? If I looked up the definition of annoying would I find a picture of you?). Meanwhile you forget to take into consideration that she has been laid off from her job and stuck at home with her four kids during this pandemic. If you remember this then you will experience empathy and shift the focus off yourself. It shifts believing that you are a bad person and takes away resentment for her.

There are so many examples. We challenge you to do a thought diary for the day. Notice any themes that come up for you ("I'm a bad mother/father/wife/husband"; "I will NEVER succeed"; "I am hopeless and lost"). See what you discover and remember to dispute to focus on how amazing you actually are. We do not give ourselves enough grace. Today is your day to kick out the negatives and regain power!

We are focusing on our Aromatherapy blend set this week. Our blends have been specially picked to emphasize the meaning behind REAL. So today instead of worrying, identify one way you are going to RELAX, ENERGIZE, ACTIVATE (all your senses, mind and body), AND LIVE!

STAY WELL AND EMBRACE YOUR AWESOMENESS:)

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