“The brain, it turns out, doesn’t distinguish between fantasies and facts when it perceives a negative event. Instead, it assumes that a real danger exists in the world.”
- Dr. Andrew Newberg, Mark Robert Waldman
Confession: I almost always get annoyed when someone says to me, “Think positively!” For some reason, it’s even worse if they say it with a big ole smile on their face.
This is probably because people only say that when I’m obviously thinking negatively.
Can’t you see I have my shades drawn?! Take your sunlight somewhere else!
But the truth is, mindset shapes experience more than we realize. According to Dr. Newberg, the brain even takes a fictional negative event and makes it real in the body. That’s why thrillers stress us out, why horror films make us squirm. Our nervous system doesn’t know it’s all made up.
So, what if we used this to our advantage? Perhaps the reverse is true as well.
Yes, the day has gone horribly.
There doesn’t seem to be much hope for improvement.
The project isn’t going as planned.
We had another fight.
That’s all true. But we can tell ourselves a better story. We can look to the things that are going right or that which brings contentment on brighter days. Maybe we’re just bullshitting ourselves at the moment. That’s OK.
Our brains don’t know the difference.
I’d love to know how you see it. Join me in the comments!