Does the "just be happy" approach work for you? Me, neither. Occasionally I can do the NIKE, you know, "just do it", act happy to be happy. If it's showtime, then the show must go on, so put on a brave face. But longterm, it's just not real, is it? It's not practical for anyone to fake it too long.
The classic Bobby McFarrin song, "Don't worry, Be happy" never fails to cheer me up for awhile. However, what's needed for being happy is frequent brain-washing because brains do get dirty. Dirty and yucky. Mud and sludge in the form of negative vibes build up inside us, but brainwashing cleans everything off. Feels good to be clean again.
Depression and negative thoughts have tremendous stickiness factor that are gluey gunk toxifying your mind. Oh, yes, my friend, your mind gets dirty, it needs a washing. So, if you personally feel the fallout of having a dirty, toxic brain, let's go to the car, I mean brain, wash.
Substantial positive change is just a wash away, though it is the newer way of thinking, like dental cleanings, it is here to stay. There is enough study and evidence to trust what works and upgrade your maintenance plan. OK, you'll need to rethink your brain in a fundamental way. No, it isn't like flossing your teeth compared to just brushing, but it is an upgrade. And afterwards your brain will see through a much clearer lens, like pressure washing the soot of the ages off those exterior windows.
It's like new wiper blades on your wind shield wipers. or adding new wind shield wipers in the first place, really.
You cannot crash diet and banish negative thoughts merely adopting a sunny outlook attitude. Why not? Because you have dirty headlights, soot covered windows and sticky thoughts. We have to do some demolition and restoration just to clear the very nature of your mental life. Put on your dust mask, and pick up a wall breaking mallot.
I've studied taught and practiced the way to overcome problematic thinking patterns. Today's bellringers touting sick and twisted struggles, peddling sad stories to earn badges of honor for whiny attention grabbers, craftily using dysfunction to get their gold stars. Currently a misguided bonus point system touts having a problematic history as a boon to getting noticed on social media, and if it is adopted by others following their "path to success', the wrong-headedness replicates. Ad nauseam.
Being a victim squashed by circumstances, is a losers journey and it has a dire cost, not to the charlatan who forged it, but to followers who think it is a true path. Despite the overcoming, sincerely peddling misery leads to more personal misery. Even comedians succumb.
Can you hide behind a facade of beauty? Can a canopy of flowers, a secret garden or coverings of silks protect you from the onslaught of a toxic mind. Sometimes, yes. Focusing on the beauty in nature, honoring the animal and plant life diversity can give us a sense of place in the world. That perspective alone is often enough to clear the mind of deceptive illusions of isolation, abandonment and disconnection. It can enlarge one's scope of life by realizing that multitudinous life forms inhabit this earth. We share one planet.
You might have carried around patterns for years. They seem comfortable and familiar.. Yet, patterns are probably what you need to change. Ouch and, "Oh, no!", you say. Listen, it is not root canal, well, it might be, (sorry) but it is just going to kill some painful and diseased nerves in your thinking, and the results will be what you desire, what we all desire, happiness. Hey, happiness is worth pursuing, right?
The potential for neurological change is baked into our DNA, part of our immune system. We are designed to adapt and survive, and that is the key to this detox protocol.
Designed for Adapability
“Our immune system is a work of art that is designed to take us from the "everything on this planet is here to destroy you", to "everything on this planet is here for your benefit.”
Marvel at that immune system your body came already equipped with. It is your greatest protector. It is your key to survival.
Create Core Resilience
Respect the system. Allow it to guide you. Invest in learning about the immune system. Much of what marketers tell you is false, so ignore the shepherd who tells you to eat healthy, get enough sleep, he is only interested in fattening you up for the slaughter, and keeping you calm until then. Instead, look to the ancient yogis and think about what Centinarians have to tell us. Many of the long lived folks had very tough lives of famine, hardship and trauma. It isn't the easy life alone but the hard life that endures also. We are designed to overcome, and grow stronger for it! I have nothing against eating healthy and sleeping well, but that is not the secret to longevity, it is a blessing when it comes, but you can survive under dire circumstances and that is what we want to do, survive in all circumstances.
Stun Your Critics
“What doesn't kill me makes me stronger.”
Within reason, this is a brilliant truism. We are strengthened by what doesn't destroy us. But that requires a different mindset than the one that is popular today. Attention grabbers are gaining points by bellyaching, and it is a good strategy to get attention. Playing on peoples sympathy, it gets their emoticons emoting. But playing the role of victim has a cost to you that is deadly and toxic. Victims, and injured animals in general, invite the sharks and clean up crew to come dispose of your wasted remains.
Banish Victimization. No more Blood in the Water
Stay strong, never let them see you sweat. Or Bleed. OK, but shouldn't I be real? The wolf wants you to be real so he can spot the weak and pounce. The shark senses the vibration of the injured, and some can smell blood in the water and they are attracted to that. Yummy for them. Not a good position for you.
Find a brick house to live in little piggy, and never venture outside again. Better yet, be brave young buck and learn to cohabitate with the wolves in the forest. Find a buddy to watch your back, making sure that buddy is not a wolf in sheep clothing, of course. Build a tribe, or join one.
And, above all, keep brave faces turned to the outside world.
Sounds disingenuous doesn't it. Well, it's called survival and I recommend it whole heartedly. There is nothing better than maintaining the life of your body, for without a body you are nobody. Good luck!