Some of us often get stuck in our heads, wrapped up in endless thinking that leads us nowhere but more confused than when we started. Or it may lead down a path of sadness, fear, anger, or another negative emotion.  Most of us know that thinking over and over about an unsolvable problem is useless and a drain on our energy. Then why do we do it, and how can we stop?  As human beings, we are wired to want to figure things out.  When there is something that is unexplainable, our brains sometimes don’t know how to handle it.  That’s how our thinking can work against us. The way through this is to learn to let go of useless thinking patterns.  There are various methods to do this. One very effective way is through meditation. Meditation is the process of focusing the conscious mind (the part of us that thinks and analyzes), on one point of focus. This is similar to giving a kitten something to play with so she doesn’t climb up the curtains.  With our minds, this keeps the thinking part on one object so that we can become a silent observer of our thoughts. Over time we can see more clearly our thinking patterns, and be in a positive to change them. Another effective method is hypnosis. In hypnosis, the conscious, thinking part of our minds is on the backburner, and our subconscious is at the forefront. In this state we can teach ourselves to literally let go of thoughts we don’t want to keep thinking about.  Then, when in a conscious state, we can re-access the hypnotic experience and let go of unhelpful thinking patterns.  Our minds are powerful, and we can learn to use them to make positive changes in our lives.