Already after a few days of logging, you can start exploring your visualized data in the stats feature of the Earkick selfcare companion app.
As patterns emerge, you may want to challenge the so-called negativity bias, a hard-wired feature in the human brain that helped our caveman ancestors survive in the wild.
It’s a tendency to give more importance to negative experiences than to positive or neutral ones.
From the past month you may only remember feeling “meh” most of the time, forgetting about the days you were feeling above average and the many nights of good sleep. There’s a hack to reset our wiring and override negative bias, without sugarcoating real issues:
First validate the negative facts and investigate red flags. Then look for the positive facts in your stats. Revisit the logs and actively relive the good experiences. Savor each and let it sink more deeply into your brain and body.
It can be something as simple as a beautiful sunset or a coffee chat with your friend.
Over time you’ll get better at rewiring your brain and experiencing happiness even during challenging episodes in your life.
Want to dig deeper into the neuroscience of why visualizing your data matters and how rewiring your brain works? Check out the following sources:
- How Data Analytics & Visualization can Aid in Mental Healthcare
- Data Visualization for Chronic Neurological and Mental Health Condition
- Getting stuck in the negatives (and how to get unstuck)
- Self-management: Systematic Review of User Perspectives
- Taking in the Good vs. The Negativity Bias
- Looking Up: Mindfulness Increases Positive Judgments and Reduces Negativity Bias
- Rewire your burned-out brain
Notice how I avoided the word “gratitude”. Beside being a buzzword, it’s a two-sided sword:
The Earkick selfcare companion app is built on four science-based elements. Check out the respective blog post on why and how we designed it.