What are some of your best tactics for turning an otherwise tragic or horrible day into a positive memory that you  can reach for when surrounded by negativity or sadness? It's been said, positive memories fuel happiness. Do your experiences support this opinion?

 

My experiences support this opinion, but with a caveat. Psychologists and researchers explain that it takes many positive experiences to offset one negative one because the brain is biased toward negativity. So if one has many negative and few positive memories to attach to, feeling positive when faced with negativity is more challenging. But the brain is willing to adapt and change according to whatever we require.

 

According to science, throughout our existence has become conditioned to keeping us aware of danger and in a psychologically "safe zone." In order to keep us feeling safe, it tracks our emotions, flags the extremely negative ones, and is on the lookout when these negative feelings are repeated. When a negative emotion is repeated, the brain stores the information and remembers it. After a few incidents, the brain is able to anticipate this negative emotion and set of "alarms" such as fear, dread or other negative emotions in advance. 

 

As a result of the brain's attention to negative emotions, we experience fear or angst before something terrible really takes place. Because of its ability to warn us of danger, the brain is "biased" toward negativity.This information is based on research and evidence acquired through scientific experiments and studies of how the brain behaves.

 

Using evidence from research and experiments, scientists and psychologists explain that the brain adapts and changes its structure in order to keep us feeling safe and contented, but it is "biased" toward detecting negativity first and foremost. 

 

One example of such research is scientific experiments conducted to determine the extent of our brain's "negative bias."   In one type of experiment, participants were shown pictures of faces or images that led to positive emotions--babies, smiles, or slices of pizza! They were also presented pictures of images that were considered disgusting or grossly negative, like dead animals, garbage, etc. Participants always noticed the negative images first, remembered them more vividly, and remembered them for longer periods of time. This led to further studies and confirmation that the brain has a negative bias (even as it works to keep us happy).

 

Because the brain is also dedicated to our feelings of well-being, it is willing to adapt to our needs, but it takes more work if one has been inundated by negative experiences. My opinion is not scientific, but it is based on years of research on the topic of depression and PTSD. My point is this: In as much as we are told, "Don't worry, be happy" in one way or another, our emotional systems are not created equal, so some of us must work harder to find positive memories that can be used when we feel overwhelmed or challenged by negativity.

 

The key to overcoming negative thoughts and experiences is knowing the brain is willing to do whatever it takes to keep us happy and safe. Finding happiness is easy for some of us; the rest of us have to work hard to create positive moments to fuel positive thinking, but it can be done with a little willpower and willingness to force the brain to change.