My thoughts used to scare me. Questions about things that were not supposed to be questioned: God, love, anger. If a thought came in to my mind, I was terrified someone would find out: I wished my mother dead when she was drunk. The things God allowed in my life made me think He was an asshole. You know, thoughts you don't usually share.
But here's the thing: YOU DON'T HAVE TO BELIEVE EVERYTHING YOU THINK. Thoughts are like birds. They fly in, they fly out. Sometimes they sing, sometimes they're silent. And sometimes they shit on your windshield. They can be a menace, or they can bring comfort. YOU get to decide how you react towards birds, AND their droppings. The same holds true for thoughts. YOU get to decide how to react towards them.
Just because a thought lands in your mind doesn't make it true. It also doesn't define you. And sometimes the negative thoughts are the loudest--those are the bird-shit thoughts. So, move your car, man! (this analogy is getting out of hand, I know. Bear with me). Don't try to stop the bird/thought from BEING a bird/thought. Moving your car means taking small actions not to kill the bird or cower in fear from the thought, but choose some other thoughts to throw in there. Go for a walk if you can. Listen to a song you love that gives you all the feels. Look up cat memes or dad jokes online. Make a mental gratitude list. Don't FIGHT the thought, OVERWHELM it.
NONE of those small things is life changing. Truly. But the thing is, you can't do anything about the negative input that life throws at you (and that you sometimes throw at yourself), but you can dilute that negative with positive input--whatever that is for you. It's a small thing, but training yourself to increase the positive input when those negative thoughts get in there will net some big rewards.
Try it. And let me know what you think in the comments below.
I wish you peace.