Our personalities, thought patterns and emotional responses are wired into our brains, but you can change your brain. Here are a few ways that can help:
Express Gratitude
Expressing gratitude regularly will help you feel more optimistic. Make the effort to look someone in the eyes and say “thank you,” and keep a journal to daily remind yourself of what’s good in your life.
Compliment Others
By finding and making opportunities to compliment others, you’ll train your brain to see the good in people, in life and in yourself.
Identify Emotional Triggers
Regularly making a list of the specific events or behaviors that triggered your response. Then spend about 15 minutes thinking about these behaviors while breathing deeply until you feel comfortable and more relaxed.
Visualize Compassion
Visualize someone you know who is suffering–a neighbor who is ill or a friend struggling in their marriage–and on each inhalation imagine that you are taking on that suffering. On each exhalation, imagine the suffering is transformed into compassion, which will help ease the person’s pain.
~DarcSunshine~
