Gil Fronsdal provides a good introduction to the practice of mental noting, and describes how it can help us to gain some objectivity with our thoughts. If we can see our thoughts clearly and name them, we’re less to be caught in them and identify with them. You can access his article here: Mental Noting
RAIN is an acronym for Recognizing, Allowing, Investigating and Nurturing. It is an approach to mindfulness and investigation of our thoughts and emotions developed by Michele McDonald and adapted and popularized by Tara Brach. The approach begins with mental noting of what we’re thinking or experiencing, but goes beyond it in giving us a framework to investigate what we’re actually experiencing when an emotion is present, and to encourage self-compassion if it’s a difficult emotion. You can find many different resources for RAIN, including handouts, guided meditations, and talks, on Tara Brach’s website at this location: RAIN: A Practice of Radical Compassion