Is Negative Thinking Sapping Your Energy?

During the late spring and early summer I had a couple of big projects that I wanted to work on but somehow found myself with no energy to focus on them. I spent maybe about three months berating myself because I could not move forward. Every time I thought about these projects I experienced the feelings of failure and started filling my head with negative messages. I am such a loser. My life is a failure. I have no energy. Why can't I get this done? What is wrong with me? My life would be so much better if I could get this stuff done!

As my energy slumped I found myself sitting on the couch in front of the television much more than usual and going to bed much earlier than normal though I wasn't really sleeping and never really seemed to regain my energy. I tried taking a couple of weeks off from work hoping to restore my energy but that didn't seem to work either. At some point in time I had forgotten how important one's mindset can be. I seemed to be trapped in a cycle of negative thinking.

What pulled me out? A question from a reader who felt like their life at the young age of 21 was over. It was so easy for me to see that this person was consumed with negative thinking and that negative thinking is an incredible energy drain. Think about if for just one moment. When you feel that you have a brilliant idea you are filled with an incredible amount of excitement and energy that propels you forward into taking action. When your thoughts are filled with doom and gloom the only thing that you are propelled towards is darkness and depression. Nothing can be good. Nothing can feel right.

So, how do you get out of that negative state of mind?

1) Look for something good to focus on each and every day in your life. This may seem like a really hard task when you have failed out of college, can't find a job, your boyfriend has dumped you and your parents won't help you with your expenses. The "good" can be as simple as the sun shining and warming your bones, having a free library card that allows you access to computers so you can job hunt, having a friend that will let you crash on their couch, or have a cell phone that allows you access to talk to others.

2) Realize that you are not the first and will not be the last to go through the experiences you are having. There are others that have experienced the exact same things that you have experienced, and far worse yet they have managed to pull themselves out and have become so much more from their experiences.

3) Look for role models that inspire you. Who out there has the ideal life that you would like to have? How did they get there? What amount of time and effort did they put into the outcomes they have achieved? What you can you learn from them?

4) Volunteer somewhere, anywhere. You don't have a job, you failed out of college. You are stuck. Where can you go? What can you do? No one wants you and you are not qualified for anything. Identify your interests and start looking for people who are doing the work you want to do. Start knocking on some doors, look for a place to do some volunteer work where you might gain some experience and valuable advice from those doing what you think you want to do. This helps in so many ways. It builds connections, gives you experience to put on a resume, gets you out of the house, allows you to focus on others instead of your own problems, and helps you determine if you really would like that line of work or not.

5) Get some exercise. Are you sitting in front of the television all day or every night after school or work? If so, change that habit. I know it can be difficult at first. When I was going through my energy slump I had to force myself to get out of the house. I didn't want to exercise because I was too tired. I can tell you that I felt much more energized after coming back in the house from a walk or run. Even a ten or fifteen minute walk can be energizing. According to a 2008 University of Georgia study, people suffering from fatigue increased their energy levels with regular exercise. For me, regular exercise also helps me clear my mind. It is time for me to think about the issues at hand that are bothering me or the steps that I need to take to get things done.

6) Look at your diet. Are you drinking a lot of caffeine through the day and into the evening just to stay awake? How much sugar are you consuming? These are all obvious and as adults most of know already that caffeine and sugar affect how we feel. Too much drains our energy. When our energy is drained we don't feel like doing anything. When we aren't being productive it is so easy for negative thoughts and feelings to kick in. We have heard for years and years that too much sugar and too much caffeine are bad for us. Yet how many of us really look at what we are consuming? Take a look. Write it down. Try to make some gradual changes that you can stick with.

7) Vitamins. Do you take vitamins on a regular basis? When I went to the doctors in January for my yearly exam the doctor told me that it was really important to get enough vitamin D and Vitamin B in my diet. I bought vitamins but didn't take them- they always gave me a stomach ache. As my energy began to slump though, I decided to listen to the doctor and started taking vitamins. I also cut out the caffeine, sugar, and some dairy products that seemed to make me feel sluggish. I started having more energy which gave me the extra push that I needed to get off the sofa and to focus on the projects I had been putting off. Starting to work on those projects restored my self-confidence and the negative thoughts I had about myself started to diminish.

8) Ask for help. If you are so incredibly stuck that you really feel like your life is not worth living, ask for help. Nearly every community in the U.S has resources available to help you move forward in life.

During the late spring and early summer I had a couple of big projects that I wanted to work on but somehow found myself with no energy to focus on them. I spent maybe about three months berating myself because I could not move forward. Every time I thought about these projects I experienced the feelings of failure and started filling my head with negative messages. I am such a loser. My life is a failure. I have no energy. Why can't I get this done? What is wrong with me? My life would be so much better if I could get this stuff done!

As my energy slumped I found myself sitting on the couch in front of the television much more than usual and going to bed much earlier than normal though I wasn't really sleeping and never really seemed to regain my energy. I tried taking a couple of weeks off from work hoping to restore my energy but that didn't seem to work either. At some point in time I had forgotten how important one's mindset can be. I seemed to be trapped in a cycle of negative thinking.

What pulled me out? A question from a reader who felt like their life at the young age of 21 was over. It was so easy for me to see that this person was consumed with negative thinking and that negative thinking is an incredible energy drain. Think about if for just one moment. When you feel that you have a brilliant idea you are filled with an incredible amount of excitement and energy that propels you forward into taking action. When your thoughts are filled with doom and gloom the only thing that you are propelled towards is darkness and depression. Nothing can be good. Nothing can feel right.

So, how do you get out of that negative state of mind?

1) Look for something good to focus on each and every day in your life. This may seem like a really hard task when you have failed out of college, can't find a job, your boyfriend has dumped you and your parents won't help you with your expenses. The "good" can be as simple as the sun shining and warming your bones, having a free library card that allows you access to computers so you can job hunt, having a friend that will let you crash on their couch, or have a cell phone that allows you access to talk to others.

2) Realize that you are not the first and will not be the last to go through the experiences you are having. There are others that have experienced the exact same things that you have experienced, and far worse yet they have managed to pull themselves out and have become so much more from their experiences.

3) Look for role models that inspire you. Who out there has the ideal life that you would like to have? How did they get there? What amount of time and effort did they put into the outcomes they have achieved? What you can you learn from them?

4) Volunteer somewhere, anywhere. You don't have a job, you failed out of college. You are stuck. Where can you go? What can you do? No one wants you and you are not qualified for anything. Identify your interests and start looking for people who are doing the work you want to do. Start knocking on some doors, look for a place to do some volunteer work where you might gain some experience and valuable advice from those doing what you think you want to do. This helps in so many ways. It builds connections, gives you experience to put on a resume, gets you out of the house, allows you to focus on others instead of your own problems, and helps you determine if you really would like that line of work or not.

5) Get some exercise. Are you sitting in front of the television all day or every night after school or work? If so, change that habit. I know it can be difficult at first. When I was going through my energy slump I had to force myself to get out of the house. I didn't want to exercise because I was too tired. I can tell you that I felt much more energized after coming back in the house from a walk or run. Even a ten or fifteen minute walk can be energizing. According to a 2008 University of Georgia study, people suffering from fatigue increased their energy levels with regular exercise. For me, regular exercise also helps me clear my mind. It is time for me to think about the issues at hand that are bothering me or the steps that I need to take to get things done.

6) Look at your diet. Are you drinking a lot of caffeine through the day and into the evening just to stay awake? How much sugar are you consuming? Th