There’s a good chance you’ve had something that worries you, makes you crave, or scares you (sometimes you know exactly what it is and sometimes you don’t). It is not uncommon for these worries or fears to flutter around in your head and cause you discomfort. What people usually try to do in these cases is to suppress or eliminate these thoughts. Unfortunately, as many studies have shown, thought suppression does not work (, 1987, , 1994, , 1994, , 1995, , 1998, , , 2000, , 2005). Ironically, trying to push those thoughts out of our minds only makes them come back with more intensity. It’s a very frustrating discovery, but one that has been replicated experimentally over and over again.
This leads us to ask ourselves, what alternatives exist to get rid of the thoughts that we would prefer not to have running around in our heads?
In an issue of American Psychologist, expert on the subject, Daniel Wegner, explains some potential methods for fighting persistent and unwanted thoughts.
Below I leave you 8 of them:
1. Focused Distraction:
It is that natural tendency when you try to disconnect your mind, that is, you try to think about something else to distract yourself. When the mind wanders looking for new things to focus on, one of those leaves you alone. Distraction does work but rarely enough; Studies suggest that it is better to be distracted by one thing than to let your mind wander. This is because an aimless mind is associated with unhappiness; It is better to concentrate on, for example, a piece of music, a TV program or a task.
2. Avoid stress:
Another intuitive method to avoid persistent thoughts is to put ourselves under stress. The thought when doing this is that the rush will leave us with little mental energy for the thoughts that are causing us problems. When proven scientifically, it does not end up being a good approach to the issue. In fact, rather than being a distraction, stress makes unwanted thoughts come back stronger, so it certainly shouldn’t be used as a way to avoid unpleasant thoughts.
If you value articles like this, consider supporting us by becoming a Pro subscriber. Subscribers enjoy access to members-only articles, materials, and webinars.
(Related articles: , and )
3. Postpone thinking for later:
While continually trying to suppress a thought makes it more intense, putting it off can work. Researchers have tried asking people with persistent thoughts to postpone their worries until a designated time of 30 minutes, the “worry period.” Some studies suggest that people find this works as a way to let go of thought suppression. So save all your worries for a designated period and then you can ease your mind the rest of the time.
4. Paradoxal therapy:
What would happen if, instead of trying to suppress a repetitive worrying thought, for example about death, you looked for it and focused on it? It seems paradoxical but concentrating on a thought can help it go away, however some research suggests that this does not work. It is based on the long-established ‘exposure therapy’: this is when, for example, arachnophobes are slowly exposed to spiders, until the fear begins to go away.
This technique is not for the faint of heart, but studies suggest it can be helpful when used to combat obsessive thoughts and compulsive behaviors.
5. Acceptance:
Along similar lines, but not as directly, there is some evidence that trying to accept unwanted thoughts rather than battling them can be beneficial. Below are instructions from a study that found a decrease in participants’ distress: “Fighting with the white of your thoughts is like fighting in quicksand. I want you to look at your thoughts. Imagine they are coming out of your ears on little signs held up by marching soldiers. I want you to allow the soldiers to march in front of you, like a small parade. Don’t argue with the signs, avoid them, or make them disappear. Just watch them go” (Marcks and Woods, 2005, p. 440).
6. Meditate:
Similar to acceptance, Buddhist mindfulness promotes a compassionate and non-judgmental attitude toward the thoughts that flit through the mind. This can also be a useful approach for unwanted repetitive thoughts.
(Related articles: and )
7. Self-affirmation:
It’s the ultimate psychological cure-all. It involves thinking about your positive traits and beliefs and has been shown to increase confidence and self-control, among other benefits. It may also help with unwanted repetitive thoughts, although it has only been tested experimentally a few times.
8. Write about them:
In contrast to self-affirmation, expressive writing (writing about your deepest thoughts and feelings) has been studied extensively and has several benefits on physical and mental health (although the effect is generally small).
Writing emotionally about yourself, then, can help you reduce recurring unwanted thoughts.
To consider
Finally, clarify that these 8 techniques should not be taken as remedies or recommendations but as what they are, hypotheses and possibilities. That said, it only remains to add that it probably won’t hurt you to try any of these techniques and probably any of them are better than thought suppression.
Fountain: