What Are You Feeding Your Mind?

I was walking my dog the other day and found myself envisioning the people in the van that just drove by, stopping and trying to abduct me. 

Another story that used to go through my head in my single days was if my boyfriend didn’t call when I thought he should, I’d visualize that he was out meeting another woman, wining and dining her--and cheating on me. 

Oh yeah, another one is I’m at the grocery store and the guy in front of me has his hand in his pocket. I immediately start picturing that he’s got a gun and when he pulls it out I’m going to tackle him to the ground, pull his hands behind his back and save the day.

These are just a few of the nutty thoughts that have gone through my mind. Sometimes I get so caught up in the story going on in my mind that once I snap out of it, its like, Wow, where am I?

Now, these sound a little crazy right? Or not? Have you ever found yourself having those kinds of thoughts? Some of you might be saying…is that all you’ve got? Mine is much more elaborate than that! 

Or some of you may think I’m a loony, if so, good for you that you don’t have those crazy thoughts. 

Now granted it’s not as if some of those scenarios are totally out of the question, but let's face it, the odds are pretty slim. Well, they are for me because I live in a low-crime suburb. 

But if those types of thoughts dominate our minds that’s not healthy; and who wants to live their life picturing getting abducted instead of appreciating the beauty of the blue sky, blossoming flowers, the smell of fresh-cut grass, the fact that we’re breathing and our heart is pumping?

Where do we want our mental thoughts and energy to go? I don’t know about you but, the end could come any minute and joy and happiness are the mental states I’m striving for.

I heard a professor once talking about the content on the news and that 90% of what is reported is negative information and only 10% is human interest and positive messages. 

I mean look at how the weather is reported, there’s a 50% chance of rain, why not say there’s a 50% chance of sunshine? Do you see what I mean? 

Also, does anyone who watches soap operas, some of the reality shows, talk shows, or the blood and guts programs realize there is a lot of garbage getting into our minds. 

Studies have shown that the human mind learns easiest when in a relaxed state. When are we most relaxed? Watching t.v. and listening to the radio, right? Based on all this mind garbage, we’re doomed. As they say in the tech world “Garbage in, Garbage out.”

If we feed our bodies’ healthy food, we’ll have healthy bodies. So if we feed our minds healthy messages, we’ll have healthy minds. So if you want to change your negative crazy stories into positive stories, then we must get the pendulum swinging from the wrong direction and go to the complete opposite side. 

Now for those of you familiar with this theory, you know it’s when something has gone too far one way, generally what happens is the pendulum must go to the complete opposite direction until ultimately achieving equilibrium, or a balanced state.

 

 

Right now for most of us, the pendulum is swung in the wrong direction or toward bad mind food. How can we get the pendulum swinging in the other direction, the direction of positive healthy minds? 

First, for those of us who are watching the news constantly and sitting in front of the TV for hours with the “junk food” (you know who you are), the objective is to turn the TV off and turn on some jazz, classical, blues, Christian rock or read a book. 

Start with biographies, self-help, motivational, DIY…you get the picture. If you do watch the tube, how about Discovery, HGTV (home and garden), History channels, or something where you’re actually learning?

Don’t get me wrong, balance is the key to life so it's not about being, necessarily, a total “Polly Anna,” but it's about paying attention to our thoughts and deciding which direction you want to go--positive or negative?

For me, every day that I’m on this earth my focus is to savor each moment and have gratitude for all that God has given me. By getting that healthy brain food into my mind, the odds of that happening are increased dramatically.

It takes 3 weeks to make or break a habit, why not try just 21 days of swinging the pendulum to the positive and see what happens? 

Worst-case scenario, more joy, and appreciation will come into your life through the power of thought. Just try it!

What if everyone starting feeding their minds “healthy food”? Maybe we’d have less violence? People might be kinder to each other? Everyone would give each other the benefit of the doubt? 

Hummm…..wouldn’t that be nice…

I would love to hear from you,  leave a comment sharing what you're feeding your mind, how you manage your thoughts, or any other inspirational ideas you may have, or connect with me on Facebook or Instagram to share your thoughts…