When talking about bad habits, usually something like smoking, sedentary lifestyle, and poor diet comes to one’s mind. However, the most common habits that do the most damage are not related to our lifestyle choices but to our psychological state.
To be able to change these common habits, first, it is necessary to know the impact they have on our daily lives.
1. Isolating ourselves from others and feeling lonely
Loneliness is devastating for both mental and physical health. It makes us feel vulnerable to others, so we become overly cautious and aloof.
Sometimes we think that this is a reasonable and prudent approach to protect ourselves from getting hurt, while in fact, excessive isolation alienates us from people who could make our life more beautiful and creative.
However, an important point is that it only makes sense to surround yourself with the right people. Finding yourself in the wrong company and unfulfilling relationships can be even more damaging than social isolation.
2. Underestimating ourselves after a failure
Failure is a life lesson that can teach us how to manage challenges more effectively in the future. Unfortunately, our “automatic” response to failure is the belief that we set unattainable goals or that we are not good enough to succeed.
Of course, it is completely natural to feel defeated in life when you come face-to-face with failure. After all, you need to get over the first disappointment so that you can analyze your mistakes and use this valuable experience to grow.
But lowering your expectations too much and beating yourself up for your failure prevents you from learning from your past mistakes. In other words, dwelling on your failure is what is counterproductive and unhealthy.
3. Making rigorous self-criticism after a blow to our confidence
Self-confidence makes us more “resistant” to the refusal or failure. Nevertheless, very often we are too strict with ourselves when others comment on our mistakes or negative sides. When our confidence decreases, we are not able to use our skills and talents to move forward.
Self-criticism is indeed one of the most common habits that are particularly damaging to one’s mental health. This is because when you become a slave to your own self-deprecating thoughts, you neglect the positive aspects of yourself, which prevents you from succeeding in life.
4. Guilt prevents us from correcting our mistakes
The guilt in small doses can be helpful, as it warns us about things that can hurt our nearest and dearest. When we ask for forgiveness and get it for a mistake we have made, our relationship with another person gets back to normal and guilt disappears.
However, sometimes tensions remain because we avoid facing up to our responsibilities. Some people also suffer from unhealthy guilt, such as toxic shame and guilt complex, which makes them blaming themselves even for the things they are not responsible for. In this case, guilt can only do you harm.
5. Dwelling on grief
When something upsets or displeases us, it is natural to try to understand what happened and look for possible solutions. But we often get stuck to the events and have the same thoughts and the same feelings again and again.
This is a common habit of all overthinkers and introverts who spend too much time in their heads. If you are an overthinking introvert, I’m sure that you often find yourself ruminating about trivial situations that happened long ago and your minor faults of the past.
This creates unnecessary anxieties and obsessions. In turn, it provokes the physical response to stress and over time increases the risk of depression, alcoholism, nutrition disorders, and cardiovascular diseases.
Which of these common habits are you ‘guilty’ of?
Concerning the first. This is true. I get sad when I’m alone. Sometimes.
But… What if I truly and honestly get bored after spending an hour with someone else? How do I handle this?
This is so very true. Everyone gets trapped in their own thoughts sometimes, and it can create as very negative state of mental health.