Your rant about the computer that didn’t turn on this morning or the coffee stain on your shirt you got, getting out of your car this morning. All of those complaints can cause your brain to shrink. Negativity is all around us; we spread it every day. Complaints affect us so much more than we think.
On one hand, complaining makes us feel better for a short time, it can affect our mental health. “Psychologically, it’s really unhealthy to squelch complaints,” said Guy Winch, a psychologist and author of The Squeaky Wheel. But is complaining worth all the negative consequences? When we only complain and voice negativity, it becomes a problem. In fact, complaining for 30 minutes or more can physically damage the brain (CNBC News). If taking away the negative and replacing it with positive changes our mental health, why don’t we do it more often? We humans like to talk the talk and complain till the job is done to make it seem easier than it was in the end.
“Pulling the plug on daily rants can help support not only your brain’s health but also your occupational well-being. Negativity stifles creativity, leads to communication breakdowns, slows progress, and is as contagious as any infectious disease,” explains Christine Louise Hohlbaum from Psychology Today. Complaining is slowly killing our minds and affecting our mental health. Complaining spreads more negativity than anything. From now on we should think before we speak and learn to not take things for granted because those complaints don’t only affect us but the people around us too. Complaining is slowly killing our minds and affecting our mental health. Complaining spreads more negativity than anything so we should try to spend more time stating the positives instead of the negatives.
One way Wayne Valley is combating this is through their third-party compliments. Mr. Wisnewski and the Guidance Department sent a Google form to students and staff in February for Kindness Month. Anonymously, positive messages to friends, peers and teachers were sent. The Google form received over 2,500 responses. Wayne Valley Television is making a video to highlight these messages of kindness. Students and staff were surprised when the camera crew showed up at their classroom doors, but all loved getting a chance to hear how much they matter to others–even if they don’t exactly know who sent the message! All other compliments are still being distributed in the coming weeks so be on the lookout for the messages you’ll receive!