Your primal brain is hardwired to protect you.
This can lead to negative thinking that feels hard to control:
“I could never have my own business – it’s way too much work.”
“It’s impossible for me to reach optimal health – chronic conditions run in my family.”
“I’ll never meet my dream partner, they don’t make ‘em like they used to.”
When thoughts like this pop up, it’s just your subconscious mind trying to protect you from change.
Change always feels scary to your primal side, even if it’s positive change.
Even if it’s change you deeply want, and know that you’re prepared for – even if it feels a little risky.
Is it possible to rewire negative thoughts?
Can you change the way you think?
Yes: It’s been proven that the brain is like plastic, and highly malleable.
It’s possible to change your repetitive thoughts at any age.
It’s an individualized process, but these are a few steps anyone can take today to start rewiring their brains, and replacing negative thoughts with positive ones.
1. Gratitude.
Practicing daily gratitude is like shining a light on the areas of your life that your primal brain often ignores.
Since your subconscious is focused on survival, it tends to highlight what’s hard or wrong, rather than what’s right…
… because what’s right is working and doesn’t need attention, according to this part of your brain.
By speaking or writing what you’re grateful for, you tell your brain to pay more attention to what’s going well in your life.
What you focus on, expands.
A great daily practice is to list 5 things you’re grateful for, and why.
It’s much more effective to go into detail, rather than just writing out a quick list of basic things.
Aim to write at least 1-3 sentences for each item.
Get to the core of why you’re grateful for each thing.
This process rewires your brain toward positivity.
You’ll likely feel a difference the first time you do it, and over time your gratitude and positivity “muscles” will become very strong.
When these “muscles” are strong, your knee jerk reactions are more likely to be neutral or positive, rather than negative.
2. Meditation.
Meditation has been proven to thicken your prefrontal cortex, the part of your brain in charge of higher thinking, awareness, and focus.
When your ability to focus is stronger, you’re better able to notice negative thoughts and rewrite them, pivoting toward something neutral or positive.
One study showed that consistent meditators in the 40-50 age range had the same amount of gray matter as the average 20-30 year old.
A daily practice of just 10 minutes can help you reorganize your brainwaves, shift and purge negativity, and increase your ability to think expansively.
Bioenergetic Health Coaches have access to supercharged, custom-imprinted energetic meditations that shorten the learning curve for them and their clients.
3. Observation.
As you develop a consistent meditation practice, you’ll begin to notice your thoughts more and more.
Noticing is the first step.
If you have the ability to identify a negative thought, you have the ability to change it.
When you notice negative assumptions pop up, simply acknowledge them, release them, and rewrite them.
Even if it feels awkward at first, just “try on” a neutral or positive thought.
Notice how it feels to tell yourself that thought, rather than the negative one.
When you practice changing your thoughts in real-time, over and over, helpful thoughts will become your new default.
It’s not about ignoring hardship or challenge, it’s about maintaining the ability to create solutions.
It’s easier to create solutions when you’re coming from a positive place.
Survival is the opposite of creation – when your primal brain is always engaged, it’s harder to solve problems.
When your prefrontal cortex is strong and you’re wired for positivity, it’s much easier.
As divided as it can feel at times, your body is one united system.
The more you can strengthen your baseline and get all aspects of yourself on the same team, the easier it will be to create the health and life you want.
The tools we’re sharing today have been absolutely transformative for us at NES, and for the incredible humans we’ve worked with all around the world.
We know they can help you too, with daily practice and commitment to yourself.
Cheers,
Harry Massey
Founder, NES Health