3/16/07: Thought Complaints

To complain is to express unhappiness about something. Complaining is nonacceptance of what is .

While we may not think of ourselves as complainers, if we express unhappiness, negative judgment or dissatisfaction about something (including ourselves), whether in thought, speech or action, we are complaining.

Many of us give ourselves praise for being able to hold our tongue. We think, “Well, at least I didn't say what I was thinking,” as though it lets us off the hook. But even if you have the thought and don't express it verbally to anyone, it is still a complaint. While it may save the other person from hearing your gripe, YOU still hear it.

It is important to remember that thoughts are just as impactful to you as words may be to someone else hearing them. Your thoughts are internal words heard by you.

When others dump their complaints on us, it often takes awareness and focus to keep our energy and optimism up. It's easy to get sucked into someone's negative energy if we are not paying consistent, conscious attention.

The same is true when we hear our own thought complaints. Our own thoughts are more powerful to us than other people's words. Only, we are often less aware of them than we are other people's words. They slip by unnoticed, all day, a complaint here, a complaint there, and by the end of the day, we wonder why we're so tired and drained. It's because we've been hearing our own thought complaints all day!

Watch your thoughts. If you catch yourself complaining, remind yourself that you are not only resisting what is, you are also dumping on yourself.