Why am I so negative? (+9 Positive solutions)
By
OptimistMinds
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Author bio
The Optimistminds editorial team is made up of psychologists, psychiatrists and mental health professionals. Each article is written by a team member with exposure to and experience in the subject matter. The article then gets reviewed by a more senior editorial member. This is someone with extensive knowledge of the subject matter and highly cited published material.
The current blogpost will be taking a close look at why you might be feeling so negative. Apart from this, we will also be checking out various ways through which you can start coping with the negativity and feel positive again.
Why am I so negative?
You might be feeling so negative because of the following reasons,
- You are living with a negative partner
- You are working in a toxic place
- You don’t have a good set of friends
- You have had a toxic parent
- You suffer from depression
- You are going through a lot of stress
- You are dealing with an addiction
- Your personality problems
- You have low self-esteem
You are living with a negative partner
A reason why you are feeling so negative is because you are living with a negative partner. The sad thing about negativity is that it can be very contagious and can easily pass on from one person to another.
Living with a negative partner who tends to always look at the negative side of things can make you feel pessimistic about everything as their negativity rubs off on you and also as their behavior towards you is not going to be constructive all the time.
You are working in a toxic place
If you are working in a toxic place filled with negative people, this can also make you feel negative. Since we spent a lot of time in the day at work, having negative coworkers around you can also make you feel very toxic.
You don’t have a good set of friends
Often, the friends and the people you surround yourself with can also make you feel negative and toxic. You may often tend to lean on your friends for emotional support and if the support they offer tends to be negative all the time, this can also lead you to feel pessimistic.
You have had a toxic parent
Bad parenting can also lead a person to feel negative all the time. Having a parent who is a classified pessimist can make you feel toxic, but simply having a parent who puts you down all the time can also do the trick.
You suffer from depression
Certain mental health conditions and disorders can also lead to feeling negative all the time. For example, depression as a mental health illness can make you feel pessimistic about everything. But as soon as treatment kicks in, these negative feelings will also go away.
You are going through a lot of stress
If you have been going through a lot of stress, this can also stimulate feelings of negativity and toxicity in you. Stress levels can lead to feelings of burnout and feelings of negativity since your mind is feeling too anxious.
You are dealing with an addiction
If you are dealing with an addiction to alcohol, drugs or something else, these too can lead to feelings of negativity. Addictions can make a person feel guilty or shameful about their behavior all the time and this can lead to a lot of negativity.
Your personality can be a reason
Certain personality types can also set off feelings of negativity in a person, especially if it has developed into a personality disorder. Having personalities like these may not affect the person much, but it can lead to others surrounding them feeling negative.
You have low self-esteem
If you are suffering from low self-esteem, this can also lead you to feeling negative all the time. Self-esteem can lead you to a negative perception of your environment, including the people around you which can be detrimental for your mental health.
How to feel positive?
While it can be easy to get sucked into a spiral of negativity for some reason or the other, there are many ways through which you can feel positive. Some great and easy ways through which you can be positive have been described in the section below.
Becoming more aware of your thoughts
The first step to become more positive on a daily basis is by being aware of your own thoughts. When your self-awareness levels increase, you will be able to see what types of negative thoughts come by at what times and through what triggers.
It is not only enough that you become more aware of the internal processes in your mind, but also try controlling and regulating them. You can do this by using the other coping strategies like self-talk and thought-stopping described below.
Practicing mindfulness everyday
Mindfulness can be great for improving your self-awareness and also for practicing relaxation every day. Mindfulness can be practiced through many different activities but the entire aim is to simply bring you to the present.
One easy way to practice mindfulness is by using breathing activities. Deep breathing, abdominal breathing and even colorful breathing activities can help your mind focus on the present rather than worrying about the past or the future.
Showing gratitude daily
Practicing gratitude on a daily basis can also help you feel more positive. Often, people tend to forget the blessings that they have in their lives and instead worry about the small and temporary problems that they are dealing with.
You can practice gratitude through a gratitude journal or even by simply counting your blessings out loud. When you are practicing gratitude, make sure that you are not forgetting the smallest of blessings like having running water or food on the table since many do not have these.
Maintaining a journal
You can also maintain a journal on a daily basis to practice being more positive. Journaling does not need to be a terrible chore and can be practiced by simply making bullet points and writing your thoughts and feelings.
Journaling can help you keep track of your feelings and your thoughts every day, thereby increasing your self-awareness levels. At the same time, this activity can also be a great way to vent and express your innermost feelings in a healthy manner.
By engaging in humor
Another healthy way to start feeling more positive is to simply engage in humor, especially humor directed at you. When you start looking at worrisome situations in a humoring lens, you will be able to change your perspective and feel more positive.
Practicing self-talk
You can also try engaging in more self-talk to feel more positive. One thing that you need to remember here is to be aware of your self-talk and avoid insulting or self-deprecating. Instead, you can try using more positive and motivational dialogue while directed at yourself.
Making thought-stopping a regular practice
Negative thoughts may come and go, but if you make it a habit to keep on focusing on these thoughts, you will become a negative person. Whenever you are having negative thoughts, you can try directly stopping your thoughts and switch to positive thinking instead.
Making affirmations a daily activity
Affirmations can also be great for instilling more positivity in your life. You can use affirmations in different ways, by creating a vision board, by writing them in journals or even by listening to them through videos.
Going to therapy
If you find that you think too negatively all the time, you can even try going to therapy. In therapy sessions, you will become more aware of the actual reasons for your negative thinking patterns. You will also learn new coping strategies to counter negative thoughts.
There are many types of therapy which you can opt for, but Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is often the most recommended one for negative thinking. CBT will teach you great techniques to change your thought process from a negative one to a positive one.
Conclusion
The current blogpost has taken a close look at why you might be feeling so negative. Apart from this, we have also checked out various ways through which you can start coping with the negativity and feel positive again.
If you like this blogpost, please leave your comments and questions in the space below.
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