How to stop degrading: tips

It is impossible to remain in one place: as soon as a person stops moving forward, he begins to move in the opposite direction. It often happens that people (especially with age) notice that, for example, it is increasingly difficult to take on work that requires concentration, learning new skills, or which is simply unusual. Increasingly, they are thinking about issues of self-development and how to stop degrading. Spoiler: reading your favorite writers and magazines, your native language, your favorite cafes and films, working in a familiar specialty and communicating with old friends - all this leads to degradation.

About degradation

Many psychologists do not recognize the use of the term “degradation” in relation to personality. However, this does not prevent the phenomenon from happening: sometimes people first slowly, and then more and more quickly, slide down the slope of life. Overall, it's a decline. To lose valuable qualities is what it means to degrade.

The brain and man have something in common - they are both lazy. They try to reduce energy costs for any activity by creating unique programs that are carried out according to a template. According to biologist Richard Simon, these programs are called engrams—a physical habit or memory trace from repeated exposure to a stimulus.

If you fantasize, you can see engrams in the form of paths that neurons lay in the brain while performing the same action. Performs longer - less energy is wasted. Sometimes paths become roads, and then entire highways. And this is an excellent superpower, but only on one hand. The other side of the coin is a decrease in brain plasticity.

The longer people use engrams, the less the basal ganglia function. And their main function is the production of acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter that helps neurons navigate new paths among information noise (this is approximately what happens after reading this paragraph).

It is enough to remember the way to school or work. Typically, people walk or drive along the same route. And if the latter is more than six months old, the “autopilot” turns on, and in parallel with walking or traveling, people can already listen to music, read or respond to messages. It is quite difficult for a best friend to hide his anxiety behind a smile, just as it is quite difficult for the person communicating with him to decipher such communication signals. The same thing happens with the menu at your favorite restaurant.

And it seems that there is no point in changing all this. But life is a constant source of changes (downsizing, falling in love with a Spanish woman, new tasks at work), most of which are not under people's control. You have to adapt to them and it is a matter of survival.

This is why brain plasticity needs to be maintained and trained. You can imagine the brain as concrete, which will harden after a certain period of time. You can also look at old people who are not able to send SMS, do not accept new things and prefer the same type of actions year after year. To cope with degradation, you need to constantly stir the mixture in your head, under no circumstances allowing it to harden.

Kinds

Before moving on to the recommendations, I want to emphasize that there are different types of degradation. Depending on them, you should select methods that will help change the situation for the better.

Physical

Make changes to your appearance. Change can be quite an inspiring element that will stimulate active activity. And who knows, maybe not only the quality of life will change, but also its structure. Contact a stylist, he will help you choose the look that suits you best.

Girls, when they realize that they have become boring to themselves, practically do not attract attention to themselves. If only because they simply don’t notice it. In this state there is no energy for flirting or making advances. And as you yourself understand, few people react with interest and excitement to an unhappy appearance. Therefore, go, for example, to a makeup course for yourself. Having learned to correctly emphasize your strengths, you will increasingly want to look in the mirror. Self-esteem will grow and, along with it, interest in life. Men can change not only their clothing style, but also make an appointment with a hairdresser who will select a stylish haircut.

Choose an activity you like, be it yoga, swimming or martial arts. But sport should be in your life at least twice a week. Thanks to training, you will not only tighten your figure, get rid of imperfections, but also improve your health. During physical activity, the hormone endorphin is produced, which is popularly called the hormone of happiness. Therefore, you will feel better and better every day. And over time, noticing changes in the mirror and admiring glances after you, you will not allow yourself to stop training. Then you will remember degradation as a terrible dream that you once had.

Proper nutrition will also add a boost of energy. The main thing is to start leading a healthy lifestyle in a comprehensive manner. For example, after serious physical activity, you are unlikely to allow yourself to collapse on the sofa before bed with chips, Coca-Cola and other harmful products. Which affect not only your health and well-being, but also take a big toll on your figure.

You don’t have to completely give up your favorite foods; allow yourself to enjoy them as a reward. Only in the first half of the day.

Intelligent

If you feel that your brain is degrading, that is, you are losing the knowledge that you possessed just recently. If you forget words and spend a long time trying to remember events that happened in the past, it’s time to act.

A lot of material on the blog is devoted directly to intellectual development. Just go to the section “The power of thought and brain development.” Let me just remind you that reading will never be superfluous. It is advisable, of course, to choose not just romance novels, but something that will make you think, reflect, and remember. Watch films with intricate plots that do not allow you to relax, but keep you in suspense until the last minute. Not mysticism and other horror films, but directly psychological thrillers, detective stories and so on.

Folding puzzles ensures the development of memory, thinking, and promotes long-term concentration. And it neutralizes the effects of stress, helping to pause and be distracted.

Go to some courses or trainings. Maybe you've always wanted to learn how to sew or knit? Master oratory or sing beautifully. Yes, anything you dreamed of, but found reasons not to start. Money, time, family, etc. So, it's time to act. Even if you don't want to anymore.

Think about what hobby is closest to you and sign up immediately. Learning something new creates new connections in the brain. And this is exactly what you need. Check to see if at work there is an opportunity to go on a business trip for advanced training courses. Employers usually welcome employees' desire to learn new things and move forward.

I recommend watching these games for brain development.

Spiritual

The most difficult type, as it deprives life of meaning, often provoking thoughts of suicide. If you feel that you have fallen into the clutches of this particular beast, enlist the support of your loved ones. It's difficult to cope alone. Because disturbances occur in the emotional sphere of a person. That is, anxiety, despair, indifference and pain are the most frequent companions. Joy, interest, love, etc. arise too rarely.

Well, restore your sensuality and awareness, increasing your emotional intelligence. Return to your sensations, try to notice what is happening to you. Communicate with those people who, in your opinion, are mature and experienced enough, and therefore can share thoughts about life and conclusions.

Think about what values you have at a given time. And do they exist at all? If you realize that there are significantly fewer of them than there were, think about why this happened. At what point did you become disappointed or stop giving them importance? If nothing in this world interests you, then it is not surprising that you feel degraded.

Restore the ability to listen to your desires by satisfying your needs. Start small, recognizing what you want for dinner and lunch, gradually moving on to more complex ones, for example, thinking about the meaning of life or your place in society.

Signs and causes

In order to understand how to stop degrading and start developing, it is very important to understand the causes and symptoms of the phenomenon. Signs can be varied and related to all aspects of life:

Decreased interest in the lives of loved ones.
Loss of communication and social skills. The person does not want to communicate as before, and if he decides to make contact, then its quality is unsatisfactory for any participant. Most of all, a degrading personality avoids communicating with those who point out mistakes and talk about the importance of changing life.
Deterioration of intellectual abilities, as well as a cooling of interest in reading and learning, learning new things.
Loss of interest in work, even if it was previously a favorite activity.
Poor vocabulary, speech mainly consists of filler words and obscene expressions, and answers are monosyllabic.
Clutter at home and/or workplace.
Negligent attitude towards one's own health and the well-being of others.
An abundance of laziness, irresponsibility, indifference. Absent-mindedness, irritability, fears, pessimism and lies.
Bad appearance. Such people stop taking care of personal hygiene and cleanliness of clothes, do not get their hair cut on time, and so on.
The emergence or worsening of bad habits, dubious connections, gambling, and a tendency to commit criminal acts.

A person may have all the symptoms, most of them, or just one. Important: all signs individually do not necessarily indicate degradation. For example, a person who works in trade may well get tired of people during the day and need time alone with himself. Writers who are passionate about books (or other representatives of creative professions and people simply in love with their work) may forget about appearance while working. Degradation can also be confused with professional burnout and the need for a vacation.

There can also be many reasons. Some of them:

All kinds of addictions (gaming, alcohol or drugs).
New circumstances to which a person is not yet accustomed. For example, this happens after retirement. People don't know what to do. Some never find suitable ways to spend their time and succumb to indifference and laziness.
Crises (age and others).
Feeling guilty about something you have done.
A traumatic incident.
Achieving the main goal, after which people feel that there is nothing more to strive for.
Mental disorders.
Loneliness.

What is the reason for inaction?

There is an explanation for this desire to be where you are.

Dynamic balance

In nature there is such a thing as “dynamic equilibrium”. When a lot of effort is put into staying in place. That is, maintain balance.

Externally, the object is motionless, but titanic work is being done inside it. But there is no strength to move forward.

This is one option: when a person seems to be rushing about, wanting something, rushing to extremes.

He starts running in the morning and stops every other day because the weather is bad.
Leaves an unloved partner, but returns a week later, “because what would he/she do without me.”
He thinks about his own business, is tormented by this question, but sits in the office from 9 to 6, because “what if nothing works out?!”

When a person spends a lot of strength and energy on communicating with manipulators, on nurturing his own grievances, on “living in the past,” on everything that requires resources but does not bring anything positive. And there is no strength left to move forward.

Foreign languages

Learning new languages is a great way to stop degrading. Everyone can find their own incentive to exercise, for example, related to a hobby, work or travel. A good motivation is the opportunity to read your favorite author in the original, listen to a musical group or become a polyglot.

Learning other languages is the most effective tool for training brain plasticity, since words and the semantic fields associated with them are usually different from the native language. This works especially well if you look beyond tourist vocabulary and delve into cultural specifics.

Content:

Why does personality degradation occur in alcoholism?
Personality disorder in a drinker
Stages of degradation 3.1. The first stage of destructive personality changes in alcohol addiction 3.2. The second stage of personal degradation of alcoholics 3.3. The third stage of degradation of alcoholics

With alcoholism, personality changes always occur.
It is impossible to drink every day and still remain an intelligent, competent and adequate person. Drinkers deteriorate. And they do it quite quickly. The sooner treatment for alcohol dependence is started, the lower the risk of dangerous mental and intellectual disorders. Therefore, you cannot postpone going to a drug treatment clinic. Only an experienced narcologist and psychologist know how to restore health to an alcoholic.

No repetitions

Refusing various repetitions is one of the most effective ways to stop personality degradation. Psychologists do not recommend rereading books you have read previously. Even if it is Haruki Murakami’s favorite or one of the best books in the history of world literature. Equally, you should not re-watch TV series and films that you have already watched (even if they are “Friends” or “Sherlock”).

It’s a very pleasant and universal feeling to plunge into the cozy and familiar world of Harry Potter or the masterpieces of Max Fry: familiar characters, lack of surprises, knowledge of the ending and the opportunity to enjoy those little things that were missed the first or previous time. But by watching a season over a weekend or devouring a book in an hour, people are robbing other literary and cinematic works of their chance to discover something completely new to them. There is no need to deprive the brain of the formation of alternative neural connections.

Reason 5. Destruction of the planet

The race for success leads to constant economic growth. This in turn affects the performance of goods and services. We become more successful and consume more food, entertainment, energy, etc. Increased production harms our planet.

For example, in Europe, the same wardrobe item has become less worn: if in 2000 the average number of wears was 200 times a year, then by 2015 this figure dropped to 160 times. We need the newest, the best, and we need more and more of it.

This approach to consumption is observed in many areas and leads to irreversible consequences for the planet. And that means for our lives.

Forget about shortcuts

One of the significant answers to the question of what to do in order not to degrade is to stop labeling people. Yes, it's very convenient. There is no need to understand a person and the motives of his actions; you can simply succumb to weakness and brand him:

drinks with friends - alcoholic;
cheated on her boyfriend - a girl of easy virtue;
mentally ill – dangerous;
does not say hello - impolite;
reads cheap detective stories - has no taste, and so on.

Each person is perhaps pressed by an even greater number of life circumstances than the same Rodion Raskolnikov. But many consider his thoughts interesting, and a divorced neighbor with three children as something unworthy of attention and vulgar.

Examples of degradation from literature and cinema

Works of art help us understand what degradation means. I will again remember A.P. Chekhov and his novel “Ionych”. This is a story about a doctor, an educated and sensual man. He fell in love with a girl, but she refused him. Having a hard time experiencing a love trauma, this person began to degrade. He thought that no one in society needed his intelligence, love and education, so he became grumpy, gained weight, gambled and became a hoarder. And he shouted and hit his patients with a stick.

If you feel that love experiences discourage you from developing and moving on with your life, read the article on how to get over a breakup.

As a more modern example, I will give the series “Patrick Melrose”. This is the story of a man with addiction who deteriorates due to a very cruel father and an alcoholic mother. Such works clearly show why people degrade. To some extent, this is a defense mechanism of the psyche - it tries to protect us from strong emotional shocks.

New routes

The next popular way to learn from your own experience how to stop degrading is the novelty of routes. Finding new paths is a great development; it makes sense to reconsider the usual route to work and home, find another supermarket and bookstore, change your favorite billiard club to something new. This may cost time, but will pay off in other ways - lower prices or fewer people in the establishment.

Main question

If the limiting factor has been eliminated or was not there at all, the next step is to ask the most important question “what do I want and who do I want to be.” There is no need to try to answer quickly. You can devote enough time to this, doing routine work during the “search” period, which brings only a certain amount of money for living.

It is important to find a balanced answer that will be a kind of ticket to a better life. It must be meaningful and motivating for some action.

Maybe all your life you have wanted to become a businesswoman and open your own business in the beauty industry? Or go on the pop stage and give concerts, even for a small audience? Or have you always been attracted to the position of top management in large companies, but never got around to even putting a finger on the path to your dream? This is it, this is the time that has come!

No criticism

Stop criticizing - this is how you can stop degradation. Negative reviews about new furniture, design or the ending of a novel, overflowing social networks and all kinds of conversations are all about resistance to changes that have come so suddenly and at the wrong time in life. As a rule, we are talking about things that people cannot change. Or they can, but it will require a lot of effort that is simply not worth it. There are more interesting things to do than keeping records in complaint books.

If we talk about the benefits for development, then it is advisable to accept the changes and engage in motivation in order to continue living in the new reality. This is what it should look like:

“Road repair? Great, because in a month there will be no more holes here. In the meantime, you can learn something new about the area.”
“New menu? Great, the old dishes have long since become boring.”
“New work tablet? Why not treat it like a quest instead of being nervous?”

What prevents a person from developing?

Fear of making mistakes

This is the disease of all perfectionists and high school students: “What if I do the wrong thing?”

In fact, mistakes are normal, without them nothing will work out at all.

Confirmation is the stories of outstanding personalities (remember Tesla, Ford, Jobs, Gates), for whom everything did not go smoothly and one failure followed another. But they did not give up - and still achieved their goal!

You can make mistakes, this is the only way to gain experience. The main thing is not to give up and try again. And don’t immediately set the bar too high for yourself, leaving no room for mistakes and imperfections. The path of development is a path of ups and downs.

Children or animals

One of the important methods that will help prevent degradation and/or get rid of it. Children are an eternal source of chaos and uncertainty. Children are living “concrete mixers” in the head; they destroy all stereotypes. Sons or daughters contribute something new every day through their behavior, questions and experiments. Parents often don’t even notice how their thinking is liberated, and they begin to think completely differently.

If you can’t (yet) have children or don’t want to, then you can try the option of having pets. For example, dogs. They need to be walked, and fresh air is good for the brain. Dogs can be just as much of a source of chaos as children. And they involve owners in communication with other dog lovers.

Be gone laziness

Carry out every planned action. Overcome laziness, do “I don’t want and I can’t.” Remember that even a small step towards any goal carries you forward, and does not roll you back. After all, this is what you wanted?

Thank yourself for completing the tasks, because even a simple trip to the theater and morning exercises will be just a burden at first. Promise yourself a new blouse or a day of shopping if you do X task several days in a row.

Of course, these are just examples. You need to come up with your own yourself. By the way, let this be your “zero” advice task that will welcome you to the path of growth and development.

Playlist update

New music is just about how to stop degenerating and start living. Scientists can frustrate even music lovers with tens of thousands of tracks in their playlists. Most often, people listen to 50-100 familiar compositions. They are pleasant for the same reasons - people have adapted to them, and the brain does not need additional resources to process and comprehend these works. But there is so much music in the world that even if you change the radio station every day, your life will still not be enough to listen to everything. However, striving for this means taking care of your own development.

How to trick your brain and force yourself to do something?

For example, a person wants to improve their physical fitness and start running. But he can’t start right now, because there are a lot of reasons: he doesn’t have running shoes, he has them, but in the wrong color, the weather is bad, and so on.
As a result, he doesn't start at all. Running means straining. There is not enough motivation.

But if there is a beach season on the horizon, an affair with an interesting partner, some important event where you need to be in shape, motivation increases sharply. Because the difference between “want” and “have” has changed.

Circle of friends

You need to expand your list of acquaintances and friends in order to find out how to stop degrading and start developing. It’s very cool when you have your own company, with whom it’s nice to get together every Saturday at your favorite bar (probably the same one) and discuss basketball or new outfits of famous singers. It's about psychological comfort.

But at the same time, most people live in big cities and it is absolutely not clear why limit your social circle to 5-6 people. By the way, most often people do not choose their comrades themselves, they are imposed by geography, school, higher education institution, work.

Man is a product of his environment. Society greatly influences people and they often change not only their opinions and interests because of their friends, but even such significant nuances as their type of activity. Is it worth talking about the influence of your social circle on your way of thinking?!

Unfortunately, degradation is an almost universal problem, and many people are concerned about how to stop degrading. The most important thing you need to do for your salvation and development is action. There are many ways to stop the process of decline. Among the most common and effective are learning foreign languages, experimenting with scents, giving up repetition, shortcuts and criticism, new roads, animals or children, updating your friends list and playlist.

Large things can be seen from afar

The next stage on the path to development is a complete outline of the very goal that you chose for the idea.

Imagine it as clearly and clearly as possible in your head. What needs to be done to achieve results? Create step-by-step, interval mini-goals that will lead you to the main thing.

By the way, we described in detail the process of implementing global and large-scale projects in the article - how to complete a large project with ease and on time.

Focus attention even on everyday little things. Never done exercises? Review the courses on YouTube - and go ahead! Do you cook fried potatoes in oil for dinner and eat incorrectly? Time to change everything! Study PP recipes on the Internet, reproduce them, take photos, share your successes with friends or just strangers, for example, on Instagram.

What is “degrade” and where did this word come from?

This verb comes from a noun that refers to the gradual deterioration over time of the characteristics of an object, substance or person due to external or internal influence. In simpler words, degradation is the gradual destruction of a person or something else.

This term is in most cases used as an antonym to the word “progress”.

The noun “degradation” came into the Russian language during the time of Peter I. Then it had a slightly different meaning. In those years, every military or civil servant knew very well what it meant to “degrade” and was very afraid of it, since this noun signified dismissal from service or demotion with deprivation of ranks.

Although a similar term degradatio in the meaning of “degradate” or “demote” existed in Latin, it came to Russian through the mediation of Polish - thanks to the word degradacja.

At the beginning of the 20th century. the word took on a slightly different meaning from its French counterpart dégrader, meaning "decline or deterioration", and thus gradually acquired its modern meaning.

The Parable of the Cucumber

There is a parable about a cucumber that tried with all its might to preserve its own freshness. Having got into a jar of pickles, he was very unpleasant at first, since the brine did not help maintain freshness. In addition, the appearance of a fresh cucumber was a reproach to its salty counterparts. But after some time, the brine ceased to be disgusting to the cucumber, and its neighbors no longer seemed so salty. The cucumber thought that it was very convenient to be like everyone else. Therefore, in order not to turn into a salty snack, you need to follow the right direction in life.

Having a general understanding of this problem, you can easily avoid the fate that is prescribed to a huge number of people.

We briefly looked at degradation in its various directions and how to avoid it. Leave your comments or additions to the material.