By: Natasha Archary
Challenge yourself to a 21 day negative detox this January.
Toxic thoughts and a negative mindset can weigh us down more than we know. It’s easy to lose focus and give in to the negativity and believe the inner voice, eating away at your hopes and dreams.
According to Cognitive Therapy and Research, we tend to dwell more on our negative thoughts than our positive ones. It’s the negative thoughts that make a greater impact on our overall mental health.
Researchers link positive thoughts to improving depression, increasing life span and reducing risk of death from cardiovascular disease.
Robin Sharma’s “The monk who sold his Ferrari”, shares a profound lesson about “The magic rule of 21.”
“For new behaviour to crystallise into a habit, one has to perform a new activity for twenty-one days in a row.”
You need a 21 day negative detox if:
- You’re always late – you hate waking up in the mornings and the thought of a regular everyday routine keeps you in bed long after your morning alarm goes off.
- You’re snapping at people – easily annoyed by everyone and everything, you’re unable to control your temper and find yourself snapping at people over the silliest things. Spilled coffee, a colleague sitting on your desk, a loved one borrowing something.
- You’re overwhelmed – it feels like the walls are closing in on you. You struggle to breathe. You experience panic or anxiety attacks. It feels like you can’t cope with all the responsibilities you have.
- You don’t socialise – you’re happier isolating yourself from people. You prefer being on your own and not dealing with their over eager personalities.
- You’re a pessimist – failing to see the beauty in life, you believe that things will never get better. That the rough spot you find yourself in at the moment is where you will always be. You feel powerless and unable to change your situation.
How to start a negative detox:
- Time – Dedicate ten minutes every day for twenty-one days to commit to the negative detox challenge. Spend these ten minutes mentally changing your negative thoughts.
- Silence – In order to do this, you will need a quiet place to hone in and find your inner Zen. Sit in meditation for these ten minutes, in absolute silence.
- Breathe – Practice a calming breathing technique while you meditate. It might seem strange because breathing is something we do involuntarily. But deep, calming breaths are needed to still your mind and let go of everything that is weighing us down.
- Positive mantras – In order to stop the negative thinking, we have to switch up our mindset. Practice repeating a positive saying or mantra everyday. When you wake in the morning, tell yourself you are going to have a beautiful day. Change the negative thoughts about your body, your position in life…whatever it is that has you down, switch it to an affirmation. Force yourself and eventually it will become second nature.
- Switch off – Social media, the news, technology, unplug from all forms of online and digital platforms completely. It doesn’t have to be for the duration of the twenty-one days. It can just be during those dedicate seven to ten minutes a day. The point is to allow yourself to completely switch off your body, mind and soul.
- Speak kind – The only things that should exit your mouth over the next twenty-one days are good vibes, intentions, compliments and positive affirmations. You should not lose your temper, swear or get involved in gossip or insulting others during the twenty-one days.
Also read: Festive season roadtrip to Buddhist temple in Bronkhorspruit
