What Causes Automatic Negative Thoughts?

You know that voice in your head that never shuts up?

The one that tells you you’re behind, you’re too much, you’re not enough, everyone can see you’re faking it… and honestly, you’re just tired?

That’s what this article is about: why your mind feels like a hostile place sometimes, and how to slowly take your power back.

Not by “just thinking positive,” but by actually understanding what’s going on in your brain.

1. Your brain is still in cavewoman mode

Your brain was designed to keep you alive, not keep you happy.

So it’s constantly scanning for danger like there are still wild animals chasing you… except now the “threat” is your boss’s short email or someone not using an emoji in a text.

That’s why you walk into a room and instantly think:

• “Everyone can tell I have no idea what I’m doing.”
• “If I speak up, I’ll embarrass myself.”
• “Something bad is probably going to happen.”

Try this:

• Name it: Call it what it is – your “survival brain” overreacting. Even saying in your head, “Oh, my cavewoman brain is panicking again,” takes the edge off.
• Ask: danger or discomfort? Almost always, it’s discomfort.
• Breathe long and slow to signal to your body: “We’re safe.”

The point: you’re not broken; your brain is just running on outdated software.

2. A lot of your negative thoughts aren’t even yours

So many of your “I’m too much” or “I’m not enough” thoughts were absorbed from other people:

Parents who were harsh or critical

Teachers who shamed you

Friends or exes who made comments that stuck

So when you hear:

• “Why am I like this?”
• “I shouldn’t be this emotional.”
• “People must think I’m weird/annoying/too loud.”

…there’s a good chance it’s someone else’s voice living rent-free in your head.

So try this:

• Ask, “Whose voice is this?”
• Rewrite the script into who you want to be.
• Pair gentler beliefs with tiny actions that prove them true.

Bottom line: you don’t have to keep believing words that were never yours to begin with.

3. You think expecting the worst will protect you

If you’re that girl who always says “I’m just being realistic,” but really you mean “I’m bracing for everything to go wrong” — yeah, this is you.

You expect disappointment before it happens:

• “If I don’t get my hopes up, I can’t get hurt.”
• “If I assume it will go badly, I won’t be shocked.”

It feels like protection, but it actually is a coping mechanism that steals your joy before life even has a chance to show you something good.

What helps:

• Writing out best case / worst case / most realistic case to see your brain is exaggerating.
• Letting yourself have small hopes (like looking forward to your morning coffee).
• Tracking your wins so your brain has proof that good things actually happen.

Message here: hope is not weakness; it’s fuel.

4. You overthink like it’s your full-time job

Overthinking is your brain trying to “solve” emotions like they’re math problems.

So you get stuck in:

• Re-reading texts 10 times.
• Replaying old conversations.

Spiraling with “What if…?” until you’re emotionally exhausted.

Thinking more doesn’t magically fix things.

What you can do:

• Give yourself a decision deadline. Five minutes, then decide.
• Use a STOP interruption when you catch yourself spiraling.
• Get into your body: walk, stretch, move, shake it out.

The idea: you don’t have to sit there drowning in your own thoughts. You’re allowed to interrupt them.

5. Negative thoughts feel more “true” (that’s negativity bias)

Ever notice how your mean thoughts sound convincing and your kind thoughts sound fake?

That’s your negativity bias — your brain gives more weight to bad stuff than good stuff.

For instances, you think:

• “If it feels bad, it must be true.”
• “My gut says something is wrong” (even when your “gut” is just anxiety in a trench coat).

Try doing these instead:

• Evidence checks: Is there actual proof, or just vibes?
• A 5% rule: A positive possibility doesn’t have to be 100% guaranteed to matter.
• Micro-positivity: finding one tiny good thing at a time to start rewiring your brain.

Key reminder: your feelings are real, but they are not always facts.

6. You’re trying to control everything (and it’s eating you alive)

Negative thoughts explode when you try to control:

What people think of you

How everything will turn out

Every worst-case scenario

You obsess, plan, rehearse, and still feel anxious, because control is an illusion.

Do this:

• Drawing a “control circle” – writing down what you actually control (your words, actions, boundaries) vs what you don’t (other people, outcomes, the future).
• Using “I choose…” language to reclaim power over your own story.
• Practicing acceptance: not pretending you like it, just admitting “This is how it is right now.”

Conclusion here: peace comes when you stop trying to project-manage the entire universe.

7. Your brain is just repeating old patterns

Negative thoughts become habits — like a song stuck in your head you never meant to memorize.

Things like:

• “This always happens to me.”
• “I’m just like this.”
• “I’ll never change.”

If your brain can learn negativity, it can also unlearn it.

Try:

• Interrupting the loop: even with something silly like “Not today, Satan.”
• Having a replacement thought ready (instead of trying to improvise positivity when you’re already triggered).
• Repeating the new thought often so your brain starts to believe it.

Main message: you’re not doomed by your patterns; you’re just practiced at them. Practice something new.

Conclusion

You’re not broken, your thoughts are just loud

• The final message is simple but powerful:
• Your negative thoughts are not your identity.
• They do not get to decide your future.

They are patterns, habits, old programming.

This article is originally published on Shimmering Positivity. Read the full comprehensive article here.