Our brain always gets more attention to negative thoughts rather than positive ones.
Ironically, some adaptive mechanisms we use to distract our minds from these thoughts often aggravate our mood. In the end, we exacerbate the problem that we were unconsciously trying to resolve.
Susan Zinn, a psychotherapist, says, “Instead of leaning into these mindless behaviors, “we have to think about how to replace them with a higher-value coping skill.
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Here are a few of the most common ways to exacerbate your irritability through poor adaptive abilities:
Not Eating When You Are Hungry
Hunger is the real thing. When blood glucose levels are low, it triggers a cascade of hormones, including cortisol, associated with stress. Shortage of energy makes us feel irritable, tired, sluggish, and annoyed.
It is better to eat food when hungry or set the alarm for a few hours to check your hunger level, or plan meal breaks in your day as meetings.
Stop Watching TV At Night
Some of you tend to watch your favorite shows for relaxation before going to bed, but it causes irritability and mood depression for some and disturbs your sleep. If you do not sleep well, your mood will not be good in the mornings.
It is better to watch shows that can freshen up your mood and give you a pleasant sleep.
Staying Indoors The Entire Day
All of you are busy working the entire day and do not even step outside, which can make you feel irritated.
It would be good if you go for a walk in the morning so that your mood freshens up once it is exposed to natural light.
Checking Your Phone Notifications
Many of us check our phones every 20 minutes for any notifications that disturb our mood. Returning back to focus is very difficult, which can lead to time management problems
The best solution is to turn off notifications on your phones or set your phone to “do not disturb” mode.
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Doomscrolling
Stop scrolling social media news which leads to increased feelings of irritability, aggression, and anger. This type of news does not come from your phone but from television and radio.
So, you better avoid limiting your news consumption once or twice a day. Try to consume news either in the morning or late in the evening.