During these challenging times, we know that parents and caregivers may need some extra mental health support. In this section, we will provide resources that families can access in order to support their mental wellbeing. May is Mental Health Month! Starting now, and during the month of May, we will be sharing resources from Mental Health America.
Getting Out of Thinking Traps
It’s easy to fall into negative thinking patterns and spend time bullying yourself, dwelling on the past, or worrying about the future. It’s part of how we’re wired – the human brain reacts more intensely to negative events than to positive ones and is more likely to remember insults than praise. During tough times, negative thoughts are especially likely to spiral out of control. When these thoughts make something out to be worse in your head than it is in reality, they are called cognitive distortions.
Tips for Challenging Negative Thoughts:
Reframe. Think of a different way to view the situation. If your negative thought
is “I can’t do anything right,” a kinder way to reframe it is, “I messed up, but
nobody’s perfect,” or a more constructive thought is “I messed up, but now I
know to prepare more for next time.” It can be hard to do this when you’re
feeling down on yourself, so ask yourself what you’d tell your best friend if they
were saying those things about themselves.
Prove yourself wrong. The things you do impact how you feel – what actions
can you take to combat your negative thoughts? For instance, if you’re telling
yourself you aren’t smart because you don’t understand how the stock market
works, learn more about a subject you understand and enjoy, like history. If you
feel like no one cares about you, call a friend. Give yourself evidence that these
thoughts aren’t entirely true.
Counter negative thoughts with positive ones. When you catch your inner
dialogue being mean to you, make yourself say something nice to balance it out.
This may feel cheesy at first and self-love can be hard, so don’t give up if it feels
awkward in the beginning. Name things you love, like, or even just don’t hate
about yourself – we all have to start somewhere!
Remember: thoughts aren’t facts. Your thoughts and feelings are valid, but
they aren’t always reality. You might feel ugly, but that doesn’t mean you are.
Often times we can be our own worst enemies – other people are seeing us in a
much nicer light than how we see ourselves.