Negative thoughts block memories. Most people agree a positive attitude is more desirable than a negative one. But few truly understand the impact it has on their memory and overall wellness.
I will always choose to be around a positive person if given the choice. Who would you rather spend a day or evening with- someone who is upbeat and fun or whiny and full of complaints?
I learned this while working in the hospital as a young nurse. There was a particular woman I occasionally worked with who was a nice person, but also saw everything in a negative light. She’d complain, comment, and after a while, I’d get sucked into her negativity. Often even when nothing went wrong, after working with her it felt like a bad day. I internalized her negativity as having a bad day. My day was not really bad, what I remembered about it was.
In the midst of those days, I missed all the good things. I lost out on all the positive memories which I will never get to make all because I allowed negativity to impact me.
The Negative Vortex
Getting sucked into negative thoughts is what I call a negative vortex. It can happen anytime and I just experienced it again recently. Click here for another blog post I wrote on this topic and how to shift out of it.
Recently, at one of my presentations on different types of memory, a woman mentioned she felt her negative thoughts interfered with her memory. I told her she was absolutely correct. When we see the glass as half empty, we give up before even trying. In the process, wonderful, intentional memories are forfeited.
We choose what we think and subsequently do. If a negative thought is chosen, it limits the rest of our thoughts and actions before they even occur. It subconsciously hinders our choices and impacts our memories and overall wellness.
A positive attitude is also critical to our physical wellness. It can carry us through undesired situations, illnesses and events in life. It can improve blood pressure, pain, and lower stress which often can lead to detrimental diseases.
When negative thoughts come, consciously push them out of your mind. Focus on the positive, choose to see the glass as half full and watch your outlook, memories, and wellness improve.