The memories of the past will connect you to the impressive parts, both beautiful and painful. But persistently indulging in your past, or thinking about what has happened, may make you feel pain.
However, if you are always immersed in negative events or emotions that have existed (and the actual situation is true), it will have serious negative impacts on your normal study, work and life.
is actually possible to manage these invasive ideas, although it may take some time and effort. Understanding why you can't help but "recalling" the past may be the first step to finding liberation.
What is thinking rumination?
Thinking rumination refers to you falling into a cycle of repeated negative thoughts about the past, and you can't seem to stop even if you want to stop.
"This is a negative cycle of excessive worry, and we repeatedly return to the same negative thoughts," explains Professor Rong Xinqi, a psychologist at the new concept. "When we are thinking rumination, we will think about some bad, troublesome thoughts or memories over and over again."
If you already have depression or anxiety disorder, this negative thinking rumination can affect your mental health and can also aggravate the symptoms.
However, some people may ask: "What is the difference between reflection and thinking rumination?". Professor Rong explained that one simple way to distinguish them is to ask yourself whether you focus on possible solutions or lessons when you think about past events. If you only focus on negative aspects, it may be "mind rumination".
"In thinking rumination, we are always addicted to the negative side, rather than working hard to solve problems or move forward," said Professor Rong.
Thinking rumination is a behavior, not a mental health problem. However, this is a common symptom of anxiety and mood disorders. But it doesn't have to be permanent, you can learn to manage it.
How to stop rumination into the past?
If you always "recalling past things" is a symptom of some kind of mental health problem, it may be more useful to ask professionals for help. By addressing the root cause, you can alleviate all symptoms, including thinking rumination.
directly solves the problem of thinking rumination, which is also helpful. The following suggestions and methods may help you stop thinking about the past:
. Try to calm your inner critics
Professor Rong said: "You are not bad, weak or flawed in thinking." Being deeply in the past and putting yourself in thinking rumination may strengthen negative thinking and increase your pain.
What you need to understand is that you cannot change what has happened in the past, but you can start creating new experiences from this second. Looking back at what you did right or didn’t do right will not change anything, but you can use the resources at hand to do what you can do right now.
. Turn your attention to more important things
Thinking about things that are important to you may help you get rid of painful thinking rumination.
Instead of focusing on what you don't want, try to consciously determine what you want in life. For example, interpersonal relationships, work, hobbies or places to go, etc.
"When you find yourself in meditation, gently shift your attention to what you feel is more important," Professor Rong suggested.
3. "Focus on the present" may help
Professor Rong explained that rooting yourself in this place may make you change your negative thoughts. So, even if it is not natural at the beginning, as long as you find yourself thinking about the past and ruminate on your mind, try to go back to the present and back to the present.
For example, look in front of you and try to find every possible detail of the first object you are concerned about. You can view its shape, texture, color, shadow and position.
Is thinking rumination the same as obsessive concepts?
The two are actually different.
Obsessive concept is a recurring irrational idea that will cause you to suffer in extreme pain. It's also an idea that you can't seem to control or get rid of, not based on facts. Obsessive concepts often involve you in rituals that you feel can relieve pain, which are called compulsive behaviors.
In fact, thinking rumination can also be a compulsive behavior - even if you don't realize this, insisting on thinking about the past may be something you can get rid of things you can't control. You may reflect on the past time and time again, trying to see what happened from a new perspective, or modify every detail as if you could change it.
Obsessive-compulsive concepts and obsessive-compulsive behavior are common symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), although not everyone who ruminates their thinking has this psychological problem.
In some cases, thinking rumination is also related to: Depression, anxiety, Postpartum depression and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Is thinking rumination always related to mental health problems?
is not necessarily true. Everyone thinks of the past from time to time, even if there are no mental health problems.
For example, it is natural and sometimes even expected that you always think of the last quarrel before you break up with your ex-partner, and even the little things you were together before. However, this will slowly fade with time and the emergence of a new partner.
If you still recall the past with the same intensity after a period of time, then you may be experiencing "mind rumination". Depending on other symptoms you may have or are not available, a mental health professional may give you a specific diagnosis such as depression, anxiety, or obsessive-compulsive disorder , etc.
Thinking rumination related to mental health problems is usually stronger and longer lasting. Professor Rong said that if you can’t stop thinking about the past but have no mental health problems, it may be easier for you to identify and cope with negative thinking cycles.
How does thinking rumination affect mental health?
Even if you don’t have mental health problems, thinking rumination will affect your mental health. “Repeatedly thinking about the same negative thoughts and sticking to them will have a profound impact,” Professor Rong explained.
But, anyway, these effects are controllable and there are ways to deal with the pain it brings.
Thinking rumination can affect your mental health through the following ways:
causes or increases symptoms of anxiety and depression;
causes you to live in a state of constant fear;
weakens your ability to focus;
weakens your motivation and limits your ability to feel happiness;
changes your sleep pattern, causing sleep problems, such as insomnia, nightmares, light sleep easily wake up, etc.
Professor Rong explained that chronic stress can also cause you to have physical symptoms or diseases, such as gastrointestinal discomfort, nausea and diarrhea, systemic inflammation, etc.
Constantly thinking about negative aspects of the past will also affect your emotional health. For example, you may often feel overwhelmed, angry, or sad.
When will you seek help?
When thinking rumination begins to negatively affect your life, it may be better and more effective to seek professional knowledge help.
Professor Rong added that if some of the self-help methods and strategies you tried yourself were unsuccessful, it might indicate that it is time for you to see a psychologist or psychotherapist.
"They are good at helping people cope with mental health problems, but they also help those who are experiencing difficulties but are not achieving a diagnosis of mental health problems," said Professor Rong.
Checking and diagnosing mental health problems is not a necessary or prerequisite for working with a psychological counselor and psychotherapist.Whether you have mental health problems or not, rumination on your mind can affect your emotional and mental health. Whatever you are doing, a psychological counselor and a psychotherapist can help you.
Reference:
·Kollarik M et al. (2020). The effect of thinking rumination on unwanted invasive ideas: copying and scaling.
·Michl LC et al. (2014). Thought rumination as a mechanism that links stressful life events to symptoms of depression and anxiety: longitudinal evidence in early adolescents and adults.
