http://www.youmeworks.com/thinkpositivelypositively.html

WHEN A PERSON THINKS a negative thought and tries to get rid of it, that person is thinking positively negatively. Daniel M. Wegner of Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas, has conducted a long string of experiments that show the futility and actual danger of trying to get rid of thoughts.

In some of the experiments, Wegner told his subjects,

Well, AA gets into this a bit, we all tend to occasionally throw ourselves a ‘Pity Party’ which leads to nothing good.

There are ways to conquer and eliminate undesirable thought chains, though.  If slighted, and it starts grating on you, bless the person.  Sounds weird, but do it over and over, and the thought pattern will quit appearing.

Other fun and easy techniques exist, on the surface they would seem hoaky and silly, but they do work quite effectively.  I will explain, but only if asked, I do not want to get boorish or preachy more than I already have.

And a great prayer to repeat and dwell on, when troubled (AA uses this as a mantra, but it existed long before AA).  You have most certainly seen it before, it is the Serenity Prayer:

God, grant me the Serenity to accept the things I cannot change,

The courage to change the things I can,

And the wisdom to know the difference.

‘God’ is defined as however you like, from higher self to higher power to Bearded and Saintly Old Man Sitting On a Throne, to Mother Nature, to whatever you like.  (That is an AA thing, I like that viewpoint a lot.)  Take your pick.

Dan, now convinced I have become boorish and preachy and a bit daffy to everyone.

God, grant me the Serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
The courage to change the things I can,
And the wisdom to know the difference.

Not boorish OR preachy really…..... I used to be PAINFULLY shy in school and hated it.  I wanted to have fun or at least be less afraid of people.

I watched the people I admired most and then ‘pretended’ to be like them in mannerism, the way I walked and held myself.  It started out being a kind of mask or costume that covered the real ‘me’ that was so afraid, helping me ‘see’ from a safe place, how people were responding and how I responded back.  Eventually the mask and costume were no longer fiction since they melded with my own personality and became ME!

I am NOT shy anymore and have been told (when I endulge) to be a good public speaker.

Good for you!

But after reading and admiring your quite intelligent and assertive posts these past several months, it is very difficult to imagine you being anything different!

Dan, Striving for Serenity, it comes and goes