Everyone is different. Every morning we wake up, we meet a different challenge. Every thought that escapes our mind, every tear that falls out of our eyes, and every heart that beats is unique. And the real marvel is that Allah knows it all.
Allah 
says in the Qur’an
“Did they not know that Allāh knows their secrets and their private conversations and that Allāh is the Knower of the unseen?” (At-Tawbah, 9:78)
The Power Of The Mind
Allah 
has made us so beautifully that it is impossible for us to not think. Every single second of our lives, we find ourselves conversing in our subconscious to an imaginary person. That is our mind. One of the biggest blessings that Allah has given to us is our mind. It works 24/7. And the beauty is that it becomes what we want it to become. Sometimes, our mind is our only friend. Sometimes it tends to betray the heart. It can even be angry at our bodies. Every feeling we experience is connected to our minds. Hence it is of immense importance that we understand our minds.
It is key to be able to control our thoughts, know our feelings, and connect with them. We all have bad days. We have had moments when we get stuck in ourselves unable to get out of the mind loop.
A thought is like a seed. The more time you spend thinking about your thoughts, the bigger your tree of ideas will grow, so, we must pay heed to whether we want a cactus in our heads or a rose.
Because your mind blossoms on what you feed it, here are 5 healthy habits to help you overcome negative thoughts and maintain mental peace during the most difficult of times.
1. Avoid Overthinking
Sometimes we get caught up in thoughts. We start overthinking. We start to imagine scenarios that do not exist and have feelings about them. Most of the pain we feel is because of our thoughts. We get consumed by self-doubt and negative imaging. All the confidence gained over years is lost in the blink of an eye. People might give us comments based on the few minutes they’ve known you for.
But we shouldn’t get affected by it. Because they don’t know the years you had to struggle to be where you are, the hardship you faced, and the tribulations that made you patient. If we keep overthinking every single thing we hear, we would never be able to move ahead in life.
It’s about time we come out of this abyss and face the world as it truly is. Change your focus. Find new perspectives. Look behind the blinds. Explore the mystery. Why should you be like someone else? Why do you need to change? When you aren’t even done exploring yourself?
You don’t ever need someone to compare yourself with. Compare you with your older self. Work smart and find your way ahead. Because it’s not who you are underneath, it’s what you do that defines you. Only you can define your success. Success is not having a good car, a big house, or living a wealthy luxurious life. Rather, it is being happy, content and patient. And to achieve this, we must start with our minds.
2. Actively Choose Positivity
All through our life, we must keep positive thoughts revolving in our heads. Even in those times when we end up talking to ourselves, We must go on ranting about positive thoughts. Because after every hardship comes ease.
“Indeed, with hardship [will be] ease.” (Ash- Sharh, 94:6)
No matter how dark the night is, the sun rises the next day. No matter how hard it is. These hard times that we face with patience and gratitude will be compensated with unimaginable blessings.
3. Maintain Sincere Intentions
Alhamdulillah! Also, those intentions that we set with the hope of achieving the love of Allah will earn us multiple rewards. Even if we are unable to perform the good deed that we intended to do, we will be rewarded for it.
Narrated ‘Umar bin Al-Khattab: Allah’s Messenger
said, “The reward of deeds depends upon the intention and every person will get the reward according to what he has intended. So, whoever emigrated for Allah and His Apostle, then his emigration was for Allah and His Apostle. And whoever emigrated for worldly benefits or for a woman to marry, his emigration was for what he emigrated for.
(Sahih al-Bukhari)
4. Practice Patience And Gratitude
For everything that you get and for everything that you lose, turn back to Allah . He is the one who made you, how can you say that you are not enough? We must be patient in every sadness and every happiness and be grateful that Allah has blessed us with what is best for us.
Once we become content with what we have, we automatically become happy. It is a core blessing of Allah . Try to remember what you think is the bare minimum, our hands, our legs, we think it is simple but imagine a life without these blessings. No wonder, the blessings that God has given us are uncountable!
5. Have Trust And Hope In Allah
Believe in Allah . Believe that things will be better. And have a sincere hope that Allah will give you baraka in all that you do. Supplicate to Him abundantly. Ask him for whatever you want and He will grant it to you by His Mercy.
Put It All Together
Find out your hidden talents, those lively gifts that Allah has blessed you with, and be grateful. Fight all that negativity and fill your mind with the beautiful colors in this world. Do what you like, and always look at things from the positive side. Most important of them all, do all of this, in your way, in your style. Because at the end of the day, everyone is different.
If you wish to know how best to tame your thoughts, understand yourself and establish a mindful connect with Allah, then immerse yourself in understanding the Islamic perspective on Psychology with the wide range of courses at IOU. Take your pick here.
