Turn Your Emotions Around This Easter

Switch from negative to positive thinking this springtime

Spring is in the air, with daffodils beginning to open and glimmers of sunshine peeking through the clouds. This revitalising season is the ideal time to have an emotional spring clean, sweeping away any lingering negativity and filling your mind with positive thoughts.

It's the Spring Equinox this month, on 20th March, followed by Easter a couple of days later, both celebrate themes of renewal and regeneration. This is a season when possibilities for your year ahead are still awakening, with opportunities just waiting to be grabbed by you.

Banish Negativity

The season of renewal is the perfect time to transform your emotions, casting away self doubt and opening up to embrace new patterns of thinking and behaviour so you can be healthy in body and in mind.

Negative emotions are limiting beliefs you hold about yourself. Through past experiences, learned behaviour, or worries you carry in your mind, you create a barrier of negative emotion that stops you from achieving your potential. For instance:

'I'm not good enough'

'I can't do it'

'Last time was a disaster'

These are negative self beliefs that become permanent negative emotions. The good news is that because you have created this emotion - you can change it, too.

The first step is to realise that you have the power to change. Then reclaim your personal power by taking responsibility for your emotions. You feel emotion in a crisis situation, but allowing yourself to dwell or remain within this emotion is a conscious choice. Accept the emotion, understand why you are feeling it, and attempt to remedy the situation causing this emotion. Then release the emotion. If you hold on to negative beliefs, then you are the one holding yourself back.

Be an Optimist

Try these tips for transforming your emotions from sad to glad

1) Enjoy Nature

The simplest way to experience positive emotion is to get out into nature. Studies have shown that a walk in the countryside can lower blood pressure and release feel-good endorphins. Sunshine will raise your vitamin D levels helping you to feel healthier. Re-connecting with nature helps you to put your problems into perspective by showing there's life outside the office/internet!

2) Break Bad habits

Whether it's over-spending, indulging in sugary, fatty foods or excess alcohol, being a social media addict, bad habits can trap you in a cycle of negative emotion. This is because your bad habits are the manifestation of negative emotions. So instead of accepting an emotion of anger or guilt - you buy a new dress or eat a cream cake. Every time you feel a craving, ask yourself what emotion you are trying to dodge. While it's not good to dwell on negative emotions, if you can recognise their source you can deal with them and kick them to the curb. Replace the negative with the positive by choosing a nutritious snack, or sticking to your budget, or limiting your recreational time online to 30 minutes per day. Think about what steps you can take to alter your behaviour, rather than just accepting negative attitudes. It takes willpower - but you can do it.

3) Don't Compare

Of course you think your colleague, neighbour or friend is happier and has an easier life than you - it's human nature to imagine every one else is happier than you. But this negative emotion is something you should change. Being envious of others’ good fortune stops you achieving your own success. Discover what your talents are, and use them!

4) Keep it Real

You'll always feel like a failure if you set yourself an unobtainable goal. Instead take small steps towards your ultimate ambition, then you'll start to experience positive emotions as you find yourself achieving. Instead of saying you're going to become a famous actor - then doing nothing about it, join a local amateur dramatics society to learn the craft. Opportunity opens from positive actions and emotions.

5) Stand up Straight

This might sound like something your granny would tell you, but studies say that altering your physical posture can give you an emotional boost. Imagine a fine silver cord running up your spine. Feel the cord gently straightening out your body. Stand tall with shoulders relaxed, legs straight but not rigid, head up so you can make easy eye contact with others.