10 Tips To Help You Start Taking Control with Positive Thinking.

10 Ways to Begin Taking Control with Positive Thinking.

At first glance, it would seem that positive thinking and Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) have nothing to do with one another. But many of us with ADD develop negative thinking patterns because we become frustrated by our challenges and frequent feelings of being overwhelmed. A negative outlook only magnifies the situation, making it all the more difficult to handle challenges and move forward.

Practicing positive thinking allows people with ADD to focus on our strengths and accomplishments, which increases happiness and motivation. This, in turn, allows us to spend more time making progress, and less time feeling down and stuck. The following tips provide practical suggestions that you can use to help you shift into more positive thinking patterns :

1. Take Good Care of Yourself

When you take good care of yourself by eating healthy, exercising and getting adequate rest, it is much easier to be positive.

2. Make a List of the Things You are Grateful for in Life

Stresses and challenges don’t seem quite as bad when you are constantly reminding yourself of the things that are good in life. Taking just 60 seconds a day to stop and appreciate the good things will make a huge difference.

3. Look for the Proof Instead of Making Assumptions

A fear of not being liked or accepted sometimes leads us to assume that we know what others are thinking, but our fears are usually not reality. If you have a fear that a friend or family member’s bad mood is due to something you did, or that your co-workers are secretly gossiping about you when you turn your back, speak up and ask them. Don’t waste time worrying that you did something wrong unless you have proof that there is something to worry about.

4. You Should Not Use Absolutes

Words like, ’ALWAYS’ or ’NEVER’ when used in a negative descriptive way, such as: “You NEVER call me any more” will only increase the negative experience. Thinking and speaking absolutes in this way will only work to make the situation seem worse than it really is, and will cause you to believe something about others that very well may not be true.

5. Get Rid of ALL Negative Thoughts that cause Anxiety

Your thoughts can hold power over you if you don’t judge them. When a negative thought begins to invade your thinking, you need to recognize it right away as a negative influence, immediately change your thinking by turning it around to something that will make you stronger and happier.

6. Get rid of the “ANTs”

Dr. Daniel Amen, founder of the Amen Clinics for, ADD tests and ADHD Tests, authored a book called; “Change Your Brain, Change Your Life”, in which he talks about the ’ANTs’ - Automatic Negative Thoughts.

These are the bad thoughts that are usually reactionary, like “Those people are laughing, they must be talking about me” or “The boss wants to see me, it must be bad”! When you notice these thoughts, realize that they are nothing more than ANTs and squash them!

7. Practice Lovin’, Touchin” & Squeezin” (Your Friends and Family)

Giving and receiving a good hug can go along way in making your day better. Positive physical contact with friends, loved ones, and even pets, is an instant pick-me-up. One research study on this subject had a waitress touch some of her customers on the arm as she handed them their checks. She received higher tips from these customers than from the ones she didn’t touch!

8. Increase Your Social Activity

Loneliness feeds on negative thinking and one way to combat it, is by increasing social activity in your life. Surround yourself with healthy, happy people, and their positive energy will affect you in a positive way.

9. Be Involved with Helping Other People or Volunteer in an Organization

Everyone feels good after helping. There are several ways to do this, you can volunteer your time, resources or money. You may have heard it said, ’Give and it shall be given’, this is a true saying and the more positive energy you put in the world, the more you will get back.

10. Have a New Thought Pattern to Fight Against Depressing Thoughts.

If you find yourself beginning to think negatively, a great way to stop it is to interrupt the pattern and force yourself to do something completely different. Recognize old thought patterns that may be hyper-focusing on something negative. That way of thinking is never productive, but only leads to stress and unnecessary anxiety. Try changing your physical environment - go for a walk or sit outside. Or, you could call a friend, turn on some music or look at a magazine.

Find sayings, scripture verses or quotes that will help motivate you to remain positive in your thinking, the following are some of my favorites: “Think like a queen. A queen is not afraid to fail. Failure is another steppingstone to greatness.” - Oprah Winfrey A Swedish Proverb - “Fear less, hope more; Eat less, chew more; Whine less, breathe more; Talk less, say more; Love more, and all good things will be yours”