Cambridge, United Kingdom – The age-old belief that attempting to suppress negative thoughts could be detrimental to one’s mental health has been challenged by groundbreaking research conducted at the University of Cambridge. Contrary to the widely held notion that suppressing distressing thoughts exacerbates mental health issues, this study suggests that it might actually improve symptoms of anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Neuroscientists Michael Anderson and Zulkayda Mamat conducted the research, involving 120 participants from 16 countries. Each participant was asked to list 20 fears about potential future events, 20 hopes, and 36 neutral events, such as a visit to the eye doctor. These fears had to be specific and recurrent, causing distress.
The participants were then instructed to associate a word with each type of event. For example, if someone feared their parents falling severely ill with COVID-19, their associated word might be “hospital.”
Half of the participants were tasked with staring at one of their negative words for a few seconds without allowing their thoughts to wander into more distressing territory. The other half had the same assignment but with their neutral words.
The critical instruction was to push any intrusive thoughts aside, not to distract themselves, and not to think about unrelated topics. This exercise was repeated 12 times daily for three days.
Upon completion of the experiment, participants who had blocked out negative thoughts reported that their fears had become less vivid, and their mental health had improved compared to the group tasked with suppressing neutral thoughts. These positive effects persisted even three months after the study ended.
Participants with high initial levels of anxiety witnessed a 44% decline in self-reported worries, on average. Those dealing with post-traumatic stress experienced a 16% reduction in overall negative mental health (a combination of self-reported anxiety, depression, and worry), along with nearly a 10% increase in positive mental health. Importantly, the study did not observe any instances of an increase in negative symptoms resulting from this intervention.
Additionally, suppressing negative thoughts appeared to lower the likelihood of participants’ mental health issues worsening over time. Approximately 80% of participants continued to use the thought suppression techniques they had learned during the study to manage their fears three months later.
Michael Anderson suggested that training the brain to block out negative thoughts could become a valuable tool in treating anxiety, depression, and PTSD, both in therapeutic settings and for individuals to use at home.
While the study’s findings are encouraging, Jan Wessel, an associate professor of psychological and brain sciences at the University of Iowa, cautioned against immediate clinical application, emphasizing the need for further research.
Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalysis theory promoted the idea of talking through negative thoughts rather than suppressing them. However, the study challenges the long-standing notion that repression is always counterproductive. It suggests that, for many negative thoughts, this approach might not be suitable.
The research does not advocate against discussing significant life events but instead raises the possibility that suppressing daily negative thoughts might be a valuable strategy for many individuals.
