(this is for the Depression Group) ANTs = Automatic Negative Thoughts
The hardest part of this process for some people is in noticing you're having automatic negative thinking, or ANTs, as we call them. Automatic negative thoughts are just there... they appear out of nowhere... and many times we are in the cycle of negative thinking before we are ever consciously aware of it.
So we are going to attempt to catch these ANTs as much as we can.
The second step is to make a statement to yourself. It is much better if you can make this an out loud, verbal statement, because it is stronger and more powerful when you do that.
The importance of making this verbal statement is to notify your brain that you do not like these automatic negative thoughts and beliefs - these ANTs - and that you do not intend to keep thinking this way the rest of your life.
This may sound strange to you, but unless you notify or "tell" your brain you don't like these negative thoughts, your mind will just continue to stream, move, and race on. By telling your brain you do not like these unhealthy negative thoughts, it will help your brain to realize you're having them more often - and when you notice you're having these negative thoughts, then you can do something about them.
The verbal statement you make to yourself should be something like this:
"Hey, wait a minute! I'm having those thoughts again that are not good for me. These thoughts are not healthy or helpful. They always lead me in the wrong direction. I'm going to break up those negative thoughts by finding some interesting distraction that I can do."
Some people say "Stop!" and see a bright red stop sign in their heads. Other people are not so visually oriented, so we say, "Wait a minute!" Both of these methods work. Use either one you want. You are telling your brain these automatic negative thoughts are not helpful and not healthy for you and you don't want to have them. Instead, you have decided to think and go in a better, more healthy direction.
Notice the statement is rational and it is true. You are making a statement that your brain can comprehend, act on, and believe. We never make la-la statements like, "When I wake up in the morning I'll be the happiest person in the whole world." If you make a statement like that, good luck! It's too much, too big, your brain can't comprehend and believe it, and when you wake up in the morning, you'll be the same old you - just another day older.
We must always stay realistic and rational. But as we make rational statements, they will change our thought processes, and as long as these statements are realistic, your brain will accept them and act upon them.
So catch yourself in automatic negative thinking mode this week several times if you can. When you've made your "stop" statement, then it's important you find something distracting to do to keep your mind OFF the thinking that is negative. Just saying stop is not enough. We need to find something interesting or something engaging to DO to get our mind off the negative thinking track.
We call these ways of keeping the ANTs away - distractions. We will want to use distractions for many weeks until we can stop the negative thinking by our thoughts alone. But for now, distractions are very important.
Below is a list of possible distractions. You need to find several that will work for you. Because every one is different, and has different interests and likes, it is important to find an activity that will take your mind completely off your automatic negative thinking.
Look over the list and see if you can find an activity or two that may help you do this.
If not, anything in your own daily life that is positive and engaging to you will work. Sometimes just doing household chores can work.
But you need to find something to break up and stop those ANTs. The more you break these thoughts up and the more you stop these runaway ANTs, the more we are putting a permanent dent in the vicious cycle of automatic thinking.
One distraction that seems to work well for everyone is singing. Now I know this sounds strange at first, but there is a physiological reason that singing is one of the better distractions. If you are singing or humming along to a tape or CD that you enjoy, you are using a completely different part of the brain than when you are thinking or speaking.
The idea here is to pick out some of your favourite music - music that is positive and has lyrics to it, and sing along with it to block out the unwanted ANTs. If the singing portion of your brain is more active, then the thinking portion of your brain is less active.
The more ANTs try to bother you, the more you should try singing as a distraction. If you can't sing because you can't get away from other people, try humming under your breath. Humming along to a song in your head keeps you in a more relaxed and peaceful state and doesn't allow the automatic negative thinking to come in and get you going again.
Regardless of which distractions you choose, it is important to find several that work for you.
You may have realized that we don't want to use distractions for the rest of our lives, and thankfully, we don't have to. We are only using distractions now, to begin to stop our automatic negative thinking, and to stop dwelling on these unhealthy negative thoughts.
Distraction Suggestions
* Exercising
* Listening to music
* Reading a good book
* Swimming
* Gardening
* Surfing the Internet
* Talking to a positive friend
* Watching a video tape - something funny
* Walking around the block
* Playing with or walking your pets
* Going for a ride in the car
* Sit down, de-stress, and slow talk to yourself
* An interest or hobby you enjoy
* Singing or humming along to music
A distraction can be ANYTHING that works for you - to temporarily get your mind off automatic negative thoughts.
We need to stop our old thinking habits - block it off - as we learn to slowly develop new thinking habits.
If we stop the old neural pathways in our brain, then they eventually have no choice but to wither up and die.
STOP that old, automatic negative thinking any way you can because it is poison...
Find as many distractions as you can to help you with your automatic negative thought stoppage.
Remember, there is a physiological reason that singing along to a favourite CD or humming a song under your breath is a very effective distraction for everyone...
Post edited at 5:07 pm on Jan. 4, 2007 by lostwitness
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