How to Handle Negative Energy (Your Own and Others’)

We may not have the technology to measure it, but you probably know what negative energy feels like. It can come from negative people, the environment around you, or your own psyche. This can leave you exhausted both mentally and physically. Negative energy perpetuates itself, thus generating more negativity. Learning to deal with it is important for your health and happiness.

You can’t really deal with negative energy until you learn its sources. These three sources could influence your feelings of negativity:

Negative people: You’ve probably had the experience of feeling a person’s positive or negative energy. Some researchers believe that this energy is real and measurable. Others believe that humans catch anger, sadness, and other negative emotions projected by others. We are good at reading people through verbal and nonverbal cues, even when they are not expressed overtly.

Negative environments: You may have experienced feeling very comfortable in some environments and uncomfortable in others. Sometimes this is due to the experience you associate with the place. It is unlikely that you will feel as comfortable in the dentist’s office as you would in a friend’s house. But there’s also evidence that the physical details of your surroundings can affect your mood. Clutter, for example, can create stress and even interfere with sleep. Environments that make you uncomfortable can be described as having negative energy.

Negative self-talk: Self-talk is the stream of unexpressed thoughts that run through your head. Negative thoughts can harm your health and well-being. People who think positively are less susceptible to colds and have better cardiovascular health. They are less likely to be depressed and more likely to live longer. Thinking positively doesn’t mean ignoring problems. Instead, it can improve your ability to cope with them.

If you have experienced negative energy in the form of people or places, or if you have had negative self-talk, you may experience these signs and symptoms:

You are critical: Being critical of others is a way of blaming someone or something else for your discomfort. Although criticizing others may make you feel better in the beginning, it is unlikely to make you feel good later, especially if you have been critical in front of other people.

You complain a lot: Complaining happens when we express out loud what is negative in our heads. Complaining can become such an ingrained habit that you don’t notice when you do it. When you complain, you express your negative energy where it can affect others.

Your health is suffering: Negative emotions can cause stress, which in turn affects your health. Stress can destroy the body’s hormonal balance, damage the immune system, and drain positive chemicals from the brain. Negative energy in the form of poorly expressed anger can cause dysfunction in the heart and digestive system.

Can not you sleep: Repeated negative thoughts are associated with poor sleep quality. It’s unclear whether lack of sleep triggers negative thoughts or whether negative thoughts keep you awake. Perhaps the combination of negative thoughts and poor sleep creates a vicious cycle in which each element makes the other worse.

Whether your negative energy comes from other people, your environment, or yourself, you can follow these four steps to reduce it:

1-Deal with negative people: You’ll be happier if you hang out with positive people, which might mean rethinking your social circle. It may not be possible or desirable to eliminate all negative people from your life. However, you can find ways to maintain positive energy in their presence. One of them is to imagine an aura of positivity surrounding you like a shield. Another is to use humor to create positive energy.

2-Create a positive environment: Organizing your home and workspace can eliminate negative energy. Keep the useful things and items you love and get rid of the rest. When you are tempted to buy more things, remember that things do not bring happiness.

3-Work on yourself: Experts have a long list of practices that can eliminate negative energy. Some of his tips include exercising regularly, eating a healthy diet, and spending time in nature or outdoors.

4-Finding value in meditation or mindfulness practice: One study found that being mindful can transform mundane tasks like washing dishes into positive experiences. Whether you meditate or not, repeating a calming mantra can get your positive energy flowing.

Source: WebMD