By Nilda Perez, MSW, LCSW-R, CCLC
It all begins with a thought. Are you aware that your thoughts command the attention of your body? If you have happy thoughts, your body reacts. Your facial expression, your eyes, your walk even your internal body reacts to your good or happy thoughts. This is why often a person who is in love “glows.” In contrast, when a person has angry, bitter, toxic thoughts, their body may react in quite the opposite manner. Research supports the assertion that illnesses such as depression, mental illness, diabetes, high blood pressure, cancer, etc., can originate from stress originating in one’s thoughts.
The bitterness of the old man and the anger of the woman next door may have all began with bitter thoughts. Bitter thoughts most often begin in unforgiveness. Yes, unforgiveness. Someone crosses you or hurts you and you hold that thought; you continue to remember it and then you guard yourself from letting it ever happen again. You continually think about it because you want to ensure that you protect yourself against it happening again. What you may be doing is holding on to something that will affect you emotionally and physically. Inevitable hurts and disappointments will continue to happen to us yet, we can decide to maintain a positive attitude and remain free from toxic thoughts. Unfortunately, over time, negative thoughts can build up and illnesses may manifest in our bodies.
The Impact of Negative Thoughts
Research proves that negative thoughts turn into fear, fear into stress and it is stress that causes physical illness. People who go through a trauma in their lives such as a death, divorce, family illness, may suddenly find that they develop an illness. The series of stressors develop into illness and stress can only be managed and maintained at bay by the power of our thought life. Things that cause us these stressors are:
Regret – Many of us live with regret about things we cannot change. We need to begin by forgiving ourselves and working at changing today for the better.
Thoughts like, “I can’t, I won’t, that’s too hard, I’m too shy,” are all negative thoughts.
Disorganization and disorder: living a life that wreaks havoc in your personal life and your environment commands stress.
Speaking negatively: “I will get diabetes’s because it runs in my family,” “Things always go wrong for me;” “I’m not lucky in love;” “I was born to fail,” or “it’s because of my ethnicity” — all negative words.
Determine Your Attitude
Despite your circumstances, you have the power to determine your attitude. With a positive attitude, you will decide your outcome and it will come to pass because your attitude will keep you focused on the goal. With such determination, it is impossible to fail at anything! There is power in thoughts. Your thoughts birth words. Your words birth habits. Your habits birth your environment. Your environment is a result of your thoughts. It is a vicious cycle that begins and ends with your thoughts. Detoxify your thoughts maintain good, clean, positive, goal oriented thoughts.
Believe the best is yet to come despite the circumstances. Dispose of the debris of toxic thoughts and find the best in the midst of your circumstances.
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