Dealing with the False Mental Narrative(s)

Life is happening for everyone at the same time. While traversing through the various stages of life, internalization can cause us to indulge in constantly creating narratives of how we would like things to be. At times, this can be productive; other times it can be stifling. The reason this can be both productive and stifling is that a lot of the time these are assumptions created by our minds to help us prepare ourselves for what could come next. Even though we make these assumptions to help us, they can often create perplexity that invite anxiety and other stressors that imbue mental tension.

If you are anything like me, sometimes, we make it a habit of believing everything we think–mistaking it to be true, no matter how insidious the thought may be. This is why when we are in a low emotional state and think negatively, we feel genuine tension and negative feelings because we assume that since we can imagine it, it must be relatively true–this is anxiety and fear at its best. The reason for this is that we have a natural inclination of mistaking anything we think for the truth.

Finding yourself suffering because of the false narratives about reality in your head can be crippling because these narratives can only be controlled by one person–you. Of course, it can be spoken about with others, which is a healthy practice, but when the rubber hits the road, it can become heavy because the thoughts belong to you. Therefore, you have to deal with them.

One of my favorite verses is, "...but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God" (Romans 12:2).

Dealing with false narratives requires patience, new perspective, and absolute realism. It requires us to slow down and pay attention to the tempo and inspiration behind our thoughts. To manage negative narratives, we have to be able to recognize the delusion that we sometimes come up with in our heads. Let's be honest, a lot of the time, the situation we are experiencing is not as overwhelming as we may feel. Sometimes, a bad situation is not actually a "bad" situation. Many times, the weight of what we are carrying is actually not that "weighty". Giving room to assessing a narrative or thought and gaining clarity breaks the power that the false narrative has over us.

Assessing alone will not eradicate the emotional feelings, but it will help in deciphering between the delusion of your imagination and the reality of a situation. It is important to grasp this because this distinction will keep you from overreacting to your false narrative(s) and anxieties. In turn, this will prevent the development of false thinking and unnecessary mental tension for yourself and others. Consider this, perhaps it is our personal narrative that brings about the mental and sometimes even physical complexities that we seek to manage and overcome.

Once the illusion of the negative narrative is broken, then progress toward dealing with the emotional heaviness that might have come with the false narrative can commence. Being mindful and self-aware can help with this. Take deep breaths, remind yourself that the narrative is not true, and see yourself managing the negative narrative with the truth about yourself and your situation.

Be patient, genuinely assess the situation, and accept the story for what it really is as opposed to what it may feel like it is. Your acceptance will bring about greater clarity and sometimes a higher awareness of what needs to be done to manage negative narratives appropriately. Doing the work and managing the negative narratives is possible!