Negative thought patterns that can lead to physical ailments include stress, anxiety, anger and resentment. All of these have been shown to be a contributing factor in disorders and diseases such as cardiovascular disease, ulcers, blood pressure problems, headaches and respiratory problems. A lot of these ailments have to be treated with medications and in some cases very harsh drugs that have serious side effects. The thoughts that go through your mind don’t only affect what is happening in the moment but can affect your whole life. Another factor to consider is keeping negative emotional thoughts bottled up. Not dealing with these emotions in an effective way can put a person into a deep depression. So how do we deal with negative thoughts and keep ourselves healthy emotionally, behaviorally and physically?

The first step in changing your thoughts is identifying the negative thought. You can control what you think about. Taking a negative thought, identifying it and figuring out why you’re having the thought gives you the opportunity to change that thought into a positive one. Stopping to contemplate your thoughts also gives you the opportunity to make rational decisions. We’re quick to make decisions about things without thinking them through.

The second step is to surround yourself with positive people and positive situations. Being around negative people makes it difficult for you to be positive. And, even when you are positive you may be criticized for being overly optimistic. Don’t leave yourself in situations where you know the outcome is going to be a negative one. If you put yourself in these situations you are putting yourself at risk for having negative thinking patterns and possibly even for falling into a depression that could have been avoided.

The third step in learning to think positively is thinking for yourself. Just because someone is being negative it does not mean that you aren’t entitled to your own thoughts and beliefs. You are not obligated to accept other people’s negative opinions.

Changing your thought patterns to positive ones will have a dramatic impact on your life emotionally, spiritually, behaviorally and physically. Not only will you start seeing positive changes in your own daily life but you’ll also start to notice that other people around you are being more positive because of your influence.