It's natural to feel more pessimistic when things aren't going so well in our lives. Regular or even constant negative thinking can also be a sign of anxiety, depression, stress or low self-esteem. This sounds a bit strange, but negativity can also be contagious.
Pessimistic describes the state of mind of someone who always expects the worst. A pessimistic attitude isn't very hopeful, shows little optimism, and can be a downer for everyone else. To be pessimistic means you believe evil outweighs the good and that bad things are more likely to happen.
Whilst everyone experiences negative thoughts now and again, negative thinking that seriously affects the way you think about yourself and the world and even interferes with work/study and everyday functioning could be a symptom of a mental illness, such as depression, anxiety disorders, personality disorders and ...
Repetitive negative thinking is associated with amyloid, tau, and cognitive decline.
Being around a negative person can cause you to feel depressed or sad as well. Research even confirms that negativity is contagious. 5 Communicating negativity in social interactions, even through facial expressions, can pass that negativity on to others.
Consider this definition of negativity: “A tendency to be downbeat, disagreeable, and skeptical. It's a pessimistic attitude that always expects the worst. Negative outcomes are bad outcomes like losing a game, getting a disease, suffering an injury, or getting something stolen.”
Pessimism affects more than just your emotional health. In fact, doctors have found that people with high levels of negativity are more likely to suffer from degenerative brain diseases, cardiovascular problems, digestive issues, and recover from sickness much slower than those with a positive mindset.
Spending time with negative people can be the fastest way to ruin a good mood. Their pessimistic outlooks and gloomy attitude can decrease our motivation and change the way we feel. But allowing a negative person to dictate your emotions gives them too much power in your life.
It's natural to feel more pessimistic when things aren't going so well in our lives. Regular or even constant negative thinking can also be a sign of anxiety, depression, stress or low self-esteem. This sounds a bit strange, but negativity can also be contagious.
According to Mayo Clinic, there are four main ones to be exact: personalizing, filtering, catastrophizing, and polarizing.
We have tens of thousands of thoughts a day – and, according to one study, 80% of them are negative! So if you have negative thoughts, you're perfectly normal. Everyone experiences negative thoughts – about themselves, other people, the future or just the world in general.
If you have a negative attitude, you're more likely to negatively impact everything around you. By taking active steps to cultivate positivity, you can counteract and change a negative attitude. Let go of expectations. Negativity often begins with expectations of yourself or others.
Feeling unfulfilled or unhappy can be a normal experience for many at different points in their lives. Factors such as work and family stressors, past traumas and negative self-talk can make it challenging to find joy.
Many people's unhappiness stems from chronic worry about the future. Worry is unhelpful negative thinking about what might happen in the future. It's different than problem-solving or planning in that it doesn't result in anything productive and is usually irrational.
Focusing on the negativity in life makes you feel depressed. When you're listening to a negative person rambling on and on about the horrors of their life, you're essentially focusing on it. You'll catch yourself starting to think like them, causing you to feel depressed about the horrors of your life.