I'm too serious

I feel the same way. Kinda like your mind doesn't want to shut down but kick in to high gear. For me it happens when I am anxious about something or nervous or hell just pure stressed out and it makes things worse for me. I am no longer able to ride a bus because of it, trust me you don't even want to know what goes on in my mind when just walking down the street. But what I try to do is just sing a song I like in my head or focus on a book that I am reading. Try making your mind focus in one direction, instead of letting it run in multiple directions all at once

 

I feel the same way too. I have SAD, but I stopped my meds, and now I'm trying to gain confidence in a natural way. I put on a serious face when I'm out in public. I'm literally trying to control every moment, I can't relax. But I think meditation and more time talking to people about life things would help. Try to tell your mind to have fun in every way possible, life is just too short.

 

I think it is good that you are trying to go the natural way to better your outlook. And you are right life is too short we all need to enjoy the little things that goes on in our lives. There is much wonder in the world but it is up to us to find it. I also think meditation is a great way to focus your mind and inner energy. It is ok to take baby steps though, too much of a good thing can be bad. Try to ease into it the best you can, remember you set the pace at which you move.

 

I can say so far its going okay. I seem to be enjoying life more than when I was on meds. And I think going hard mode for some time now is rewiring my brain. I truly feel happier now. Let's all relax and enjoy life more! I wish you luck OP and devorian you too.

 

I believe the whole mind over matter aspect of life is a powerful way of thinking. And Iceman I wish you luck on the road you have chosen, I hope that you achieve peace that we all seek.

 

Hi! I agree with Devorian and iceman137. Meditation helps to clear the mind. Seriousness is a problem that I face too, in fact it is a major one. Suppose if an event occurs, I think so much about it, I make stupid conclusions and I take even more nonsensical actions. Keeping calm was never my style...something I am working on.

Replacing a negative thought whenever it occurs with a positive one, seems to work!

 

I read something that say if you ask yourself a question in your mind it will look for the answer. So if you are to ask why does no one like me your mind searches for that answer and makes you dwell on it, same goes for if you ask why am I so awesome. So when I have found that I am letting my anxiety build, and I don't have the time to meditate, I just ask myself why is today going to be epic.

 

Hey @Eric'sBlue . I have faced this problem too. And to me it seems like people who haven't felt this don't understand what it's like. I don't have the answer. One thing that has helped me was getting far away from stressful situations. For example, my mother is super pushy and manipulative, and moving to a different state so that I don't see her as much, has helped. But what about the things you can't get far away from, like my wife and children? Dunno. I am getting better, though. I think this is a growing experience.

The following might not be helpful for everyone. I am going to share it because I found it helpful. There was one cute short story that I listened to on Librivox that actually helped me this last weekend when my parents visited me and I had to deal with my stressed out wife and manipulative mother (both of whom I love dearly - don't get my wrong). It's Chapter 10 of The Magic World called "The Aunt and Amabel" by Edith Nesbit (Narrated by Ruth Golding). It's about becoming one of the "People Who Understand."

After listening to this children’s story, I was inspired to become one of the people who understand. My wife and mother were at odds this weekend and I was caught in the middle. I tried understand each of them separately and take their sides. This helped me to overcome their childish behavior and not feel the need to correct them, which would have made me feel worse.