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Large loads, a huge amount of information, excessive demands – sooner or later the brain begins to boil. He needs rest: for this, it will be useful for someone to take a walk in silence, for someone – to throw out their thoughts on paper, watch passers-by, or just think about nothing.
“I can no longer think about anything” – these words would delight any Buddhist, who in response would surely say: “Then it is time to indulge in the wonderful state of “thinking nothing”. But, unfortunately, in the life of a Western person, this phrase does not mean anything good and usually sounds in the following context: “My head is overloaded,” “Thoughts are confused,” or “The brain is about to explode.”
What is the reason? There are several. Firstly, we receive information from different (numerous) sources and are constantly faced with contradictions, rumors, denials and confirmation of previously received information. We find ourselves in the crossfire of data every day. A particularly fierce struggle is being waged between the classical mass media and the Internet, hence the contradictions in the information received.
In addition, we are constantly running somewhere and in a hurry – the rhythm of life is constantly accelerating. And every day we have to solve a huge number of questions and tasks. The crazy rhythm of modern life overloads the brain. Our own thoughts, which literally swarm in our heads, can also have a negative impact. As a result, this all leads to the accumulation of feelings of anxiety and guilt or a sense of one’s own worthlessness.
Writing is a kind of mirror, turning to which we learn to better understand ourselves and solve problems.
Psychologists call this “thought overload” “mental intoxication caused by too much information and negative thoughts,” similar to physical intoxication, which can be caused by the abuse of drugs, artificial food additives, and pesticides.
In our turbulent times, during the period of endless shocks and overloads, it is vital for us to learn how to get rid of unnecessary thoughts and free our brains from all that is superfluous. First of all, this is necessary in order to find inner balance. Here are three exercises to get you started on your mental detox routine.
Throw out negative thoughts
Writing is a kind of mirror, turning to which we learn to better understand ourselves and solve some problems. For many years, writing has been actively used in the techniques of personal growth and development. This is a great way to come to terms with the past, build on the present, and prepare for the future.
“Writing is a thread to the soul, through which we can get to certain emotions, depending on what is happening in life,” explains handwriting therapist Dominique Vaudoisé. In this case, the pencil is used as a tool that allows you to get rid of unnecessary thoughts in just a few minutes.
Exercise No. 1
Take a piece of paper and start writing without thinking about the meaning of what you have written and without trying to evaluate it. Forget about the harmony of phrases and do not concentrate on your task – putting things in order in your thoughts. Do not stop the flow of words splashing onto the paper, do not miss any of them. After a couple of minutes, once you’ve completed the page, pause and close your eyes, concentrating on the depth and rhythm of your breathing. Then open your eyes and look at the leaf. Without trying to analyze what was written, just ask yourself the question: “What message was I trying to convey to myself in this letter?”
Go for a walk
Kant’s promenades in the gardens of Königsberg, Henry Thoreau’s forest walks, Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s hiking… Philosophers of all times have experienced the beneficial effects of walking. So they found a source of inspiration. But what is the secret? The fact is that leisurely walking is a great way to clear your head of parasitic thoughts. Moreover, it is not so much walking itself that has a beneficial effect – without a doubt, good for health – but what we see.
While walking through the forest or through endless sparsely populated buildings (for example, churches, monasteries), vision is concentrated on trees, bushes, flowers, columns … Monotonous eye movements allow you to synchronize the work of the right and left hemispheres of the brain, thereby removing the nerve clamps that form as a result emotional shock, negative thoughts, obsessions.
As a result, the functioning of the nervous system is improved. This discovery belongs to the American psychologist Francine Shapiro, the author of the psychotherapeutic method of EMDR therapy. She developed her method about 20 years ago, just after a walk in the forest. In fact, walking through the forest is like having an EMDR session in natural conditions.
Exercise No. 2
Set aside 20 minutes and go for a walk, even around nearby houses. Walk at a calm pace—neither too slow nor too fast. For two minutes, concentrate on your breathing – breathe deeply and calmly, completely relaxing your diaphragm. Let nothing occupy your thoughts except inhalation and exhalation. This elementary physical exercise will allow you to get rid of internal tension. Then, continuing to move and without turning your head, peer into the details of the landscape around you, as if you were seeing it all for the first time. After a while, you will feel how unnecessary thoughts go out of your head.
Get rid of negative thoughts
Negative thoughts that endlessly spin in the head remain not only in the mind, but throughout the body. Caused by difficult life situations, unresolved conflicts, emotional shock, these thoughts are always accompanied by unpleasant physical sensations that we prefer to forget about.
If you do not get rid of these thoughts and accompanying physical sensations, then over time they will cause serious disturbances in the mental and physical condition of a person. If you want to get rid of negative thoughts and emotions, just “push” them out of yourself.
Exercise No. 3
Write a list of everything that clouds your thoughts. Remember that you could not get rid of anger, unresolved conflicts, unflattering remarks from a colleague, an unpleasant argument with a friend or a quarrel with a loved one … List on paper point by point all the unpleasant events of the last three months – large and small, which seem to be stuck in your mind and body.
What events “clog” your brain?
When you’ve finished your list, go back to each item and describe as accurately as you can how you felt in each of the embarrassing situations listed. Now close your eyes and focus on your breath. Breathe calmly and imagine the described situations – one by one, trying to revive the emotions experienced in each case. Name them: “Then I felt …”. Then take a deep breath and, as you exhale, forcefully push each of these emotions out of you, helping yourself with your hands.