Slow Down Your Thinking

If you have anxiety, chances are your thoughts run a million miles a minute. There are many things you can do to alleviate anxiety such as exercising or meditating, but one of the best ways to cure anxiety is to slow down your thinking.

The thing about anxiety is that it consists of many negative, disempowering thoughts which pollute the mind until there is a complete imbalance in the mind.

With so many disempowering thoughts it can incapacitate and weakens you to inferiority. But that’s not who you are and it certainly isn’t the best way to live your life.

Imagine going through your entire life with crippling anxiety, not realising that all it takes to remove it is to slow down the thinking process.

Why Slow Down Your Thinking

The very thought of slowing down thoughts when you have anxiety can be quite excruciating at first. But for me, it was the only thing that truly worked.

I am going to show you how I managed to do this, but I first just want to explain why it is so important.

By slowing down your thinking, it allows you to capture wayward thoughts. When you capture these wayward thoughts you will notice their negative hold on you.

It may be critical thoughts about yourself that you have most likely become blinded to over some time.

Knowing exactly what these thoughts are, allows you to question and examine them. And upon examination, you can eliminate their power. You may be thinking that examining anxious thoughts are the last thing you would want to do, because it can be terrifying sitting with them.

But being terrified of them (resisting them) is what gives them their power over. And once you bring them to light and examine them, you get to remove their power of being so worried about them.

In your examination of them you get to see just how false they are. Once you see their untruth, you then remove any power they have over you.

So keep reading to find out what methods you can use to slow down your thinking.

Method 1 – Journal Your Thoughts

One of the best techniques I have to slow down your thinking is by writing in a journal or diary. As you write down your thoughts, write in a very slow manner.

This gives you the time to think about what you want to say before writing it down.

What you will find is that as you write, thoughts will pop up in your head. Many of these thoughts will be anxious thoughts. Let the thoughts come and acknowledge them, don’t entertain them or get defensive with them.

Just allow them to enter without judgment. What you may find is the urge to avoid them because the human brain is designed to avoid pain. But in this instance allow them to surface even if it stops you from writing any further.

When I first did this exercise, I felt that whatever I was doing in the moment was far more important than listening to those pesky little thoughts.

I believed that giving them attention would only make them more prominent in my mind and distract me from what I was doing. Especially if I was doing something important.

But writing in a journal means you have the time to acknowledge those thoughts. Also, journaling in this method does not need to be a regular habit, this is something that can be done once in a while when anxiety arises.

Once you acknowledge the wayward thought, or the thought that causes you to tense up, stop what you are doing and write down the anxious thought.

Examine the thought. Ask yourself is this thought true? Really explore the belief behind it and be patient and open-minded with it. The idea is not to ‘fix it’ and get rid of it, it is to examine it, investigate it, elaborate on it and understand it.

Where does the belief come from? Why do you feel this way? What had made you come to this conclusion?

Just by saying the anxious thought aloud and writing it down, removes the power it has on you. If you have to write two pages about it then have the patience to do so.

When you have this level of patience within you, not only do you increase your ability to be patient but you also remove a big chunk of your anxiety in the process.

Method 2 – Think Very Slowly

The next time you find yourself actively thinking about something, for instance in your car or out walking, slow down the words in your mind as you think them.

So if you are thinking about things that you need to do when you go to work, think about them slowly. It may sound something like this;

‘When…..I….go…..into…..work……tomorrow…..I….will…email….my…..client….and…...ask…him….if….his….order…has …arrived.
Then…..I….will….call…the…purchasing…department…to…let…them...…know... etc'.

As you do this, anxious thoughts may arise. As they surface, acknowledge them and go through the above process of investigating them until you find out why they give you anxiety.

Ask yourself why this thought has so much power over you and try to find a different perspective of it.

Method 3 – Read Very Slowly

This method is very similar to the method above where you read every word slowly. Whether you are reading a book, an article or a work email, read it slowly and see what thoughts pop into your mind.

Go through the exact same processes as above and clear out all the gunk that is weighing you down.

I have personally tried so many things to alleviate my anxiety and nothing has worked as effectively as this.

I finally feel like I have more control over my mind and my thoughts no longer terrify me the way they used to. At the same time I actively increase my self-esteem and confidence during this process so that I know that I can handle anything.

So here you have 3 ways to slow down your thinking. Just to recap, here they are again:

Journal your thoughts
Think very slowly
Read very slowly

Hi I’m Nayla

I give the best tips and techniques on eliminating anxiety and re-wiring the mind for success. I help people to achieve their dreams and desires simply by changing the way they think.

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