Brain Laundry
Doing brain laundry is similar to washing clothes. See how separating dark thoughts from light ones can help you start afresh, and attract the good.
Freshly laundered sheets. Fluffy pillows. And a perfectly made-up bed. Who doesn’t love that sight and feeling?
The cleanliness and fresh fragrance give you an immediate, implicit invitation to lie down and fall asleep like a baby after a long, tiring day.
The same goes for clothes. When clothes are laundered, folded, and stored, our homes instantly look tidier, and shoulders feel less burdened.
I know people who find the process of doing laundry calming. They take great effort in separating dark and light colours, and enjoy hanging their laundry carefully and in an organised manner.
No, I’m not one of those, I admit. Laundry is a chore to me that just needs to be done and out of the way. I do it because I like a clean home. It’s the same reason I do brain laundry.
But What Does My Brain Have to Do with It?
Conventional laundry and brain laundry are similar, you see. Research suggests that we have 12,000 to 60,000 thoughts per day, out of which a whopping 80% are negative. The worst part is that 95% of those thoughts get carried over to the next day.
That’s like one smelly towel making your whole load of towels go smelly. Now this one I have experience with. My famous line when this happens is “why does our laundry smell like the dog we don’t have?” Classic sarcasm, I know.
And every laundry aficionado knows how a hidden red item can make all their white clothes turn 50 shades of pink. Side note: no one writes books about those buggers, eh?
Jokes aside, brain laundry works the same way. If you don’t get the pesky dark thoughts out the same day, chances are, you won’t have any good ones left for the day after.
You’ll not only carry over the distraught feeling to the following day(s), you might annoy or even worry your friends, coworkers and family for that “meh” energy you’re spreading. I’m convinced you’re convinced by now. Ready to start?
Taking Away The Shame And Judgement
Firstly, you don’t need to feel ashamed of your dark thoughts. As a child, I read a lot of books on Hindu mythology which spoke of sages who had dark (angry) thoughts too.
Even though they sat under holy trees for years, ate mostly fruits and veg, and kept away from worldly pleasures, they still had to actively work on their dark thoughts. So relax, we all have dark thoughts and it’s okay.
Secondly, no one expects you to write down all the thoughts you have in a day. You’ll know if the dark ones exceed the light ones or vice versa based on how you feel throughout/at the end of your day. If you go to bed feeling angry, sad, or worn out e.g., you’ve tipped the dark scales over.
Moreover, there’s no right way to get the dark thoughts or as I call them “bad boys” out. And just forcing yourself to think better ones doesn’t always work: we aren’t a computer that can get instantly restarted.
Brain Laundry: Let’s Separate Them Bad Boys
Below are some daily techniques that work for me. Especially when my days are particularly challenging and filled with anger, disappointment or sadness:
Breathwork: Many a spiritual master will tell you that managing your breath is the best way to shape your mind and thoughts. This has worked for me on days where my heartrate has suddenly jumped due to anxious thoughts. There are countless (free) apps to help you with this, so don’t hesitate to try them out.
Meditation: Think of this practice as a way to find peace, flow, and creativity. Meditation can become a soothing habit if one just tries. I hesitated to try it until I turned 28. It was the only thing to help me survive the jolts of life back then, and I haven’t stopped ever since.
Good Sleep: Research claims that a lack of sleep can negatively affect how we process positive emotional content. Deep sleep with Rapid Eye Movement (REM) is needed for brain and body health and wellbeing. Check if you’re getting enough shut-eye, and what you can do to fix it.
Community: I’ve written about the effect of community on our thoughts in my previous post, so I won’t get into much detail here. If you don’t have enough friends or people to talk to, however, it’s never to late to seek out new ones. From my own experience, loneliness can make us feel unloved or unwanted. But trying different hobbies is a cool way to meet people who care about the same things, and make you feel like you belong.
Journalling: The power of a good journalling habit should never be underestimated. If you’ve gone to bed with dark thoughts or want to start your day with the right intentions, writing in a journal is one of the best ways. Start with affirmations, list your dreams and goals, and remember to be thankful.
By engaging in these daily habits, you’ll weed out the dark thoughts and make space for what really matters. You’ll sleep better, become more appreciative, and also feel more resilient. No matter what life throws at you.
And that, dear reader, is how I advocate doing brain laundry. Because just like you, people want to surround themselves with clean and fresh minds too. Why not gift yourself and others this squeaky-clean headspace?
Wishing you love and light :)
Raksha
What a fantastic analogy, or might I even say analog...people have been saying to me for years, "what's the brain got to do with it"? -- I hear in my head, "what's love got to do with it"? To me, it's the same question. You know how marriage therapists will say," don't go to bed angry with your spouse -- have a pillow talk!" I make sure I don't go to bed angry with myself, or with dirty laundry in my head, it's perhaps the one thing I get right nearly everyday...prayer helps tremendously, and so do the spirit powers of reason and wisdom.
My friend wrote a book on this very subject! It's called "Mental Laundry: The Choice of Optimistic Brainwashing" and is available from Amazon Books. Coincidentally, it was published 10 days after your post.