09 PRACTICAL TIPS TO REDUCE OVERTHINKING

 

        Thinking is what makes you different from others. This mental process has changed the course of the entire humanity. It's the core of all mental activities. The development and the transformation each one of us can feel and notice are due to our thinking. It is bliss to humanity. It is so powerful that it decides your destiny and shapes your life. Your entire being is a sum of your thinking.

       It is a continuous process. Your mind always gets occupied with different thoughts. These could be about your personal, professional, social, financial, and other aspects of life. You have to think to bring good out of each action you perform in day-to-day life. But, this bliss of thinking turns into a curse when you start thinking more than enough. Thinking is a two-way edge sword. It is always helpful to you when you do it appropriately but excess use of it kills you. It becomes harmful to your entire being when you do disproportionate thinking.

      When a single thought is repetitively haunting you and disturbing your daily life, realize that you are now a victim of excessive thinking which is called overthinking. You must have found yourself thinking about past events unnecessarily or imagining a horrible future feeling uncomfortable and restless in the present moment due to overthinking.

       Though overthinking is not a mental disorder, it is at the root of many mental disorders like anxiety, depression, insomnia, nervousness, and many more. It is an unhealthy habit that typically causes more stress by focusing more on the negative. It gives birth to a lot of negative emotions from fear to revenge. You always try to control something that is out of your control. Instead of coming up with a solution, you end up with a broken mind and heart. This vicious cycle of illogical and imaginative thinking keeps on replaying in your mind like a broken record.

         Here are 7 practical ways that will help you to stop overthinking.

1. DEVELOPING AWARENESS

    Becoming aware of what is happening inside your mind is the first step to breaking its flow. Overthinking makes you unaware of everything that you do at that moment. But when you become alert and know that you are in a process where you are crossing the boundary, you take a pause.

2. DISTRACT YOURSELF

      We all know the importance of concentration but here distraction can help you to get rid of overthinking. When you overthink, you are focused on a single repetitive thought, unconsciously you are flowing with the flow. Engaging yourself in unusual activities which need your conscious attention can divert you from overthinking. You can choose activities like drawing, painting, crafting, and other social activities like attending functions, meetings, etc.

3. SHARING IS CARING

      Thoughts bother you until they are not let go out of your head. Sharing your feelings and thoughts with others surely can help you to reduce overthinking. These are the thoughts that are not getting any solutions or conclusions that can find a way with the sharing. This process of sharing will let you understand whether you are doing it enough or more than enough. This process of exchanging thoughts gives you a new perspective and that would be the solution to your overthinking.

4. INCREASE YOUR ACCEPTANCE LEVEL

    overthinking about the past is a sign of lacking acceptance. You keep on repeating the thoughts as you don't accept them. You can't change whatever happened so accept it. Instead of repeating why it happened to you, accept the event and move on. You need to be flexible and adaptable. Rigidity never lets you accept the event and decreases your comfort.

5. DEEP BREATHING

      One of the life-surviving functions of the human is breathing, yet few people know how to breathe. It is not only about providing oxygen to your body but can help you to strengthen your mind and body too.

    Breathing deeply from your stomach is the surest way to break the cycle of unwanted thoughts. You can do it by sitting down calmly or lying on the bed. Pay attention to inhaling and exhaling with closed eyes. Take a deep breath that will push your stomach out, hold it for a while and release it slowly. This process will make your mind calm and will fuel your body with energy.

  You can schedule a specific time after every 90 minutes for deep breathing exercises. You can take 5 to 7 deep breaths in the scheduled time. You will start seeing results in a few days.

6. MEDITATION

      Meditation is always better than any other activity you can do to make your mind calm and peaceful. Spending 10 minutes a day meditating can reduce overthinking to a greater level. It has a direct relation to your pre-frontal cortex which manages higher-order brain functions, like increased awareness, concentration, and decision-making. Meditation brings positive changes in these functions as well as makes them stronger which leads to clarity in thinking.

7. BRING THOUGHTS ON THE PAPER

      Write down the thoughts instead of letting them wander in your head. Thoughts have a high speed when they are in the head but they slow down when you write them down. Writing will give a sense of resolve and relief. It brings clarity as well.

8. THINK ABOUT WHAT’S IN YOUR CONTROL

        Many of the events, situations, or people that you keep on thinking about are not in your control. You need to think only you can do something about. Thinking about uncontrollable situations is like catching the air. It is a total waste of time and energy.

9. LIVE OUT OF YOUR HEAD

  The real life is out of your head. What is in your head is the perception of reality. When you are suffering from any thought in your mind that thought needs not to be always true. It is just an opinion you have about reality and it is always different from what is going on in your head. Don’t live in imagination. Don’t ask ‘what if?’ as it will just create another thought.

               “NOTHING WILL KILL YOU MORE THAN THE WEIGHT OF YOUR OWN THOUGHTS”.

 

AUTHOR

Mr. Abhijeet Manav

( Mindset Coach, Soft Skills Trainer, Motivational Speaker, and NLP Practitioner)

EXCEL TRAINING SYSTEM

Contact for coaching, training, and counseling. 

+91 9503839760