So, this isn’t Derren Brown stuff...
Honest!
Mind training is gently and kindly challenging your friend when they say negative things about themselves (that sounds way easier, eh!?).
Negative thoughts are part of our human mind set. Most of us have to fight the inner voice which tells us we are rubbish, ugly, fat, stupid or unkind at some points in our lives… The key to managing this negative inner voice is to train your brain to tell it to ‘get stuffed’!
If your friend says negative things about themselves often, here are some tips to help them ‘train their brain’:
- Listen to them – don’t say ‘that’s rubbish’
- Don’t get angry when they say negative things about themselves
- Do – ask them to say what the opposite is of the negative thought
- Do – ask them write the positive side of each negative thought they have
- Do – ask them to put the negative thoughts they have written in the bin
- Do – ask them to put the positive thoughts up in their room, or list them on their phone so they can see them and read them when they are saying negative things
- Do – do things together than are achievable and fun. If they hate ice – skating and fall over all the time, don’t go ice skating!
- Do – be positive in the words you use with your friend, even with ‘banter’! It has a huge effect.
Now, try it on yourself too – positive people have a better outlook on life!