How do you clear your mind of thoughts?

sabatier

I realised some time ago that my thoughts are making me unhappy and if I had the power to just STOP thinking, or at least think positively, then all my problems would be solved. As simple as.

I know that meditation and indeed the whole Buddhist philosophy is founded on this simple concept, but it takes years to master meditation.

So has anyone here managed to clear your mind, even for a while? And I'm not talking about doing things to take your mind off something else, for example watching tv when you're really stressed.

Torakx

i have issues with this myself.i suffer alot of confusion and anxiety due to tinnitus so meditating and dealing with anxiety is kind of hard sometimes.
Recently i have been reading a book on NLP and it explains alot about thoughts and emotions and how to work for each other.
i wont tell you how to do this because it might be seen as giving medical advice.plus i have only got halfway through my first book on NLP.

i will say how it might help you though.i will pretend you have no idea about it,hope thats ok.
NLP stands for Nuero Linguistic Programming.the topic covers alot of areas. from body language all over the body to tone of voice and words used.also different peoples perceptions are important among other things.

so for example if you were bitten by a dog as a child and have a phobia.using nlp you can create that same feeling through suggestion and trance states even a light trance where you are fully concious.once you create this feeling you hook it to an anchor at the right moment.this is called anchoring.it may be a touch, gesture, a word or picture or all of the above for a more effective result.
now after some work you can test the anchor by firing it off and getting that same emotion response just by touching your head or whatever the anchor is.
once this is done for the negative emotion the same is done for the emotion you want to replace it with.and this is then placed with the same anchor(stacking).
with other methods like making the negative picture smaller and the positive bigger etc etc you can change the minds perception of that situation and greatly ease for example fear of dogs.NLP is great for changing your perspective from a negative to a positive its all how you look at and remember things.

so if your thinking thoughts that make you depressed.the nlp way is to give you more options on ways to think(preferably positive).i recommend anyone to buy/rent a book about this topic.i would actually feel robbed as a psychologist if i didnt have these tools at hand.i understand that might be an ignorant comment since i am not a psychologist,but i want to show how much respect i have gained for NLP and its benefits to psychology or potential at the least.

but in saying all this i dont know your circumstances.your thoughts that are making you unhappy may be well founded and the reason you are thinking them is because you know you need to act.or it could be from something else altogether.

i can only say i have found learning about myself from reading these type of books has changed my perspective on life and my future.i hope you follow suite and if not see a GP to get a session with a counselor or someone you feel happy to talk with that knows the score.

me_right_one

OP, do you mean idle thoughts, like when you're lying in bed or sitting on the pot? or purposeful thoughts, like when you're driving, and you think "the light is red, i must stop the car"?

Or do uncontrolled thoughts pop up and say "no, keep driving", and take over your actions, forcing you to drive through it?

Kooli

sabatier wrote: »

I realised some time ago that my thoughts are making me unhappy and if I had the power to just STOP thinking, or at least think positively, then all my problems would be solved. As simple as.

I know that meditation and indeed the whole Buddhist philosophy is founded on this simple concept, but it takes years to master meditation.

So has anyone here managed to clear your mind, even for a while? And I'm not talking about doing things to take your mind off something else, for example watching tv when you're really stressed.

If anyone tells you it is possibly to stop thinking, or to only think positively, then they are lying! You cannot prevent unpleasant thoughts, but you can change how you respond to them.

I'd recommend you look into mindfulness, which is about taking a different stance towards your thoughts and feelings - about being fully present in the moment, and allowing thoughts (negative and positive) to come and go without fighting them or getting caught up in them, and observing them in a completely non-judgmental way.

I'm not explaining it very well, but it's well worth looking into. Good luck!

Odysseus

Kooli wrote: »

If anyone tells you it is possibly to stop thinking, or to only think positively, then they are lying! You cannot prevent unpleasant thoughts, but you can change how you respond to them.

I'd recommend you look into mindfulness, which is about taking a different stance towards your thoughts and feelings - about being fully present in the moment, and allowing thoughts (negative and positive) to come and go without fighting them or getting caught up in them, and observing them in a completely non-judgmental way.

I'm not explaining it very well, but it's well worth looking into. Good luck!

I maybe coming from a totally diffierent place than Kooli, but I concur. I work on the process of free association, that is the clients whatever is on the surface of the consciousness, and to say it as they think it, not to reframe it, or censor it for various reasons.

I often have patients saying my mind has gone blank, No it hasn't, at least they are thinking I have fcuk all to say. If I believed a patient of my had no thoughts going in there mind, I would be evaulating if CRP was needed and shouting for someone to dial 999

Hello?

Kooli is correct. it's about living in the now. My thoughts used to overwhelm me and when I finally decided to get some help, first thing I was told was to meditate. It doesn't take years, but it does take a bit of effort. the key is to sit quietly somewhere and to focus on something, such as your breathing, and to let go of any thoughts that come into your mind. I was also taught that to focus on my breathing, I had to mentally follow each breath from the beginning, as it filled my lungs and as it left my body. To help with the thoughts that would wander through my mind, the person who was helping me suggested that I imagine these thoughts as coming in one ear and and then opening a door to let them go out the other. Within a few days, I was able to meditate for a few minutes and within a week or so, I was able to meditate for 10 minutes which is my usual time. I live alone so it's very easy for negative thoughts to overtake me. Some thoughts I can let go very easily because I've been over them so many times. Others take a bit longer. But I can now pull myself up and say enough, time to move on. It's really worth the effort for the inner peace and overall happiness. All the best!

A quiet one

Just a general question to those who have contributed; (This stuff is over my head)

What about yoga?

I'm not saying I've done much yoga, but there was always a meditative bit at the end.

Usually it started with everyone lying down, eyes shut, been instructed to focus on how their body feels, its weight pressing into the surface you lay on; generally the instructor would suggest starting from the sensations in the feet and work upwards (though lying flat, this mean towards the head)

It didn't really work for me because a serious accident had (at the time) left me unable to feel certain areas that I wouldn't ordinarily be all that aware off and the gaps in connections were such a distraction as to ruin that bit for me.

But I'm thinking it might help the OP.. but no real idea.

Odysseus

A quiet one wrote: »

Just a general question to those who have contributed; (This stuff is over my head)

What about yoga?

I'm not saying I've done much yoga, but there was always a meditative bit at the end.

Usually it started with everyone lying down, eyes shut, been instructed to focus on how their body feels, its weight pressing into the surface you lay on; generally the instructor would suggest starting from the sensations in the feet and work upwards (though lying flat, this mean towards the head)

It didn't really work for me because a serious accident had (at the time) left me unable to feel certain areas that I wouldn't ordinarily be all that aware off and the gaps in connections were such a distraction as to ruin that bit for me.

But I'm thinking it might help the OP.. but no real idea.

The meditative bit at the end as you callled [I think rightly so] is used in alot of drug treatment and rehab centres, I'n mot a fan but can't deny its benefits.

Hello?

Yoga is wonderful. It's a calming experience and, because you have to concentrate on doing the moves correctly, it does help with meditation. It's also helped me to improve in other sports as it's made me more supple. For me it's the typical "if I'd known then what I know now, I'd have taken my friends advice and signed up for yoga classes ages ago". If you haven't done yoga before, take the classes as you really do need an instructor to guide you through the moves.

It's nice to see so many people respond respectfully and positively to this thread. A lot of us walk around with a smile on our faces because we're afraid to show the turmoil inside. I needed to talk with a professional to help me sort through my issues. One thing she told me that I will never forget is that by continuing to allow the negative thoughts to dominate, I was allowing the people connected with the thoughts to continue to control my life. It took a fair bit of work, but I've turned that around. Another benefit is that the amount of time negative people spend in my life is absolutely minimal.

hotspur

Cognitive therapy is the most efficacious therapy for altering automatic thoughts.