REASONS OF OVERTHINKING Ruminating involves rehashing the past: •I shouldn’t have spoken up in the meeting today. Everyone looked at me like I was an idiot. •I could have stuck it out at my old job. I would be happier if I would have just stayed there. • My parents always said I wouldn’t amount to anything. And they were right. Worrying involves negative—often catastrophic—predictions about the future: • I’m going to embarrass myself tomorrow when I give that presentation. My hands will shake, my face will turn red, and everyone will see that I’m incompetent. • I’ll • My never get promoted. It doesn’t matter what I do. It’s not going to happen. spouse is going to find someone better than I am. I’m going to end up divorced and alone. DANGERS OF OVERTHINKING. Overthinkers don’t just use words to contemplate their lives. Sometimes, they conjure up images. too. They may envision their car going off the road or replay a distressing event in their minds like a movie. Either way, their tendency to overthink everything holds them back from doing something productive. SYMPTOMS OF OVERTHINKING Catastrophizing This is when you imagine a worst-case scenario as the inevitable outcome of a situation you’re worried about. “When we are caught up in overthinking, we typically go straight to the worst-case scenario and also overestimate the likelihood of that scenario actually happening,” All-or-nothing thinking You may feel like you’re struggling at work, or on the flip side, like you’re the employee of the month. It’s all-or-nothing thinking — there’s no gray area. “Whereas in reality, most things in life are somewhere in between,” Overgeneralizing This is when we experience a setback or failure and generalize that event across all situations. We may wrongly assume that things have — and will always — go wrong for us. While anxiety tends to be more future-oriented, you may also struggle with overthinking about the past. “Doing so is more connected with depression,” HOW TO STOP OVERTHINKING. Notice When You’re Thinking Too Much Awareness is the first step in putting an end to overthinking. Start paying attention to the way you think. When you notice yourself replaying events in your mind over and over, or worrying about things you can’t control, acknowledge that your thoughts aren’t productive. LET GO OF THE PAST Overthinkers often focus on the past, expending energy on “what ifs” and “should haves.” Those who understand how to not overthink know that the past is just that. It can’t be changed. The only thing you can change is the meaning you give to it. Rethink your “what ifs” Do you constantly ponder questions like “What if I lose my job?” or “What if I get sick?” While having these thoughts is normal, it becomes a problem when you focus only on the worst-case scenario. LIVE IN THE MOMENT Living in the moment is key to learning how to stop overthinking. Most people can’t just flip a switch and live in the moment – or can they? You can take control of your mind and stop negative emotions in their tracks. Identify overthinking before it spirals out of control and take a minute to reset. Breathe and focus on the moment – what are you hearing and seeing? What are you grateful for? At first, it will take conscious awareness. Daily rituals like meditation and priming can help you retrain your brain to live in the moment. Soon you’ll find it comes naturally. DISTRACT YOURSELF specifically selecting activities that are highly engaging and positive, so that they effectively shift your attention from overthinking. Examples may include vigorous exercise, taking a hot shower, doing a crossword puzzle, holding an ice cube in your hand (a suggestion from dialectical behavior therapy), watching an engrossing movie, playing a game, or any other type of healthy activity that you find helpful. Now come to the 2 most effective ways tried by myself. And in none of that previously mentioned strategies work-out for you then try this I guarantee you if this will not work out there is not a single another way to you to overcome your overthinking. 1st and the most effective one is MEDITATION See most people make mistakes while doing meditation is they try to stop their money mind, and the catchy point here is do not try to stop thought that come in your mind when doing meditation rather than that obser then see them flowing in your mind Here how to do that sit properly and don’t force to stop thought instead just watch your mind where is going and do nothing else. That’s it nothing big deal to do. Now the 2nd very effective way is to write your thought on a paper or notepad. You might have question that how writing our thoughts can help us to overcome from overthinking. Well first of all, When we say that we are overthinking? When our mind is full of unnecessary thoughts, right? So, when you write down your thought in that way you are throwing your thought out of your mind and making you mind empty. So, that’s why I’m saying writing down your unnecessary thought can help you overcome the overthinking tremendously.
