Any advice on how to do this one. Recently I have been Noticing how no matter how many Good things I do in a year once they’re over they don’t really bring positive feelings the same way that the bad things pop up and make them selves dwelled upon.
So now when something that causes anxiety or dread starts to show up in my head, I immediately say "I don't want to think about that" and I say a little prayer. Sometimes, I keep repeating the prayer to keep my mind occupied on something besides dread.
The other most impactful thing I've done for my anxiety was uninstalling all news apps from my phone. I check the headlines one time in the morning to satiate my curiosity then I don't look at the news at all.
When unpleasant thoughts arise, the (canonical Buddhist) strategy is to move your attention to something (anything!) else.
Using mantra (prayer) or force of will ("I close my attention to this thought") are both applications of the technique.
I am sure even dalai lama has a nagging inner voice thats harshing his buzz all the time. All the stuff these folks preach is just entertainment.
Inner voice has been conditioned by evolution, food, famine, floods, climate, culture , your body, your parents and host of other fears and hopes. You cannot simply trick that voice into thinking happy thoughts.
It does.
one thing about writing vs daydreaming. daydreaming tends to have a bad reputation: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daydream#Benefits_and_costs but to me, a daydream is just a story not written down. when i focus on daydreaming i am literally doing the same thing as when i am focusing on writing a story.
i also write down positive experiences so i can revisit them if i feel the need (although i never do that. it's enough for me to know that the memory is saved)
you could try listening to entertaining podcasts if you want something to distract you while doing other work.
another thing that i found when i miss someone, is that drawing them lets me feel closer to them. if you want to try that but worry about your drawing skills, i recommend taking a photo of that person, break it down into small rectangles and then reconstruct the photo one rectangle at the time. that ensures you get the proportions right even if you don't have any drawing skills and you won't get frustrated that your drawing looks wrong.
Any time you have the opportunity to experience gratitude, contentment and appreciation for what you do have it brings a great deal of peace.
