Monday's Mental Health Moment

I was thinking about thinking.  Do you ever do that?  Well, I went to my trusty little buddy, Google, and learned that the mind can process anywhere between 50,000 and 70,000 thoughts in a given day.  At first I thought, there's no way I can think of 70,000 things in a day.  And then, I thought about this some more.  The last few days I have been paying closer attention to everything that comes and goes through my mind.  Although, I don't have the patience to sit and count every thought I have, I am fairly certain I believe these numbers are accurate.  At least for me.  As I have been carefully observing my thoughts, I decided to share with you what I've noticed.

My thoughts are not full sentences.  Well, unless I'm practicing a conversation I plan to have with someone.  Or, I re-think a conversation that has already taken place.

A mental eye roll counts as a thought, right?

I make sigh, grunt, and groan noises in my head.  (For example: arg, uh, oh, DOH, grrr.)

When I laugh quietly to myself, I actually mentally say "Ha ha ha" sometimes.  

I'm guessing that at least 75% of the "thoughts" that enter my mind in a day are just one or two random words at a time.  

Random song lyrics occasionally pop in my head.  Okay, not occasionally.  Frequently.  Very frequently.  

There is absolutely, positively no coherent flow to what goes on in my head.  If my thoughts were written down in a book, it would never be on the New York Times Best Seller list.  Here's why:

Chapter 1

Just kidding.

Once upon a time....

No.

Chapter 1.  Yes.  Chapter 1.

Where are my keys?

1, 2, 3,4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9... KEYS!  9th pocket.  Always one of the last pockets. Ugh.

Wait.  Snow?

(Will Ferrell pops in my head and he's dress liked Elf)

SANTA!!!  I KNOW HIM!

Melissa.  Focus.

Skip ahead to Chapter 10.  I'll fill in the rest later.

What...is...that...

Hm.  I'm shedding.

HELLO, COFFEE!  Mmmm....

Yes, my mind works in goofy ways.  A few weeks ago on the blog I talked about mindfulness.  Our minds are pretty powerful and we spend a lot of time in our 'headspace'.  Sometimes our thoughts aren't always silly, funny, or maybe even pleasant.  It's probably unrealistic to think that all 70,000 of our daily thoughts can be upbeat, but I challenge you to make sure there's more positive than negative going on up there.  It's also completely okay to quiet your thoughts and just let that space be vacant for a moment.