Self-love

Overthinking Shenanigans: Is Something Bothering You?

By Khushi Agarwal | Read her take on overthinking

Every human being goes through different problems in his / her life. Different age groups attract different problems. Some actual ones and some cooked tediously in our minds. Well, most of the time, human beings go through the same troubles. But often, the root cause is one – Overthinking. There is no easy solution to this mind-numbing disorder. You must have heard from many indifferent persons, “Stop overthinking, you are just doing it intentionally.” So, what did you think that this genius answer did not come to my mind? What people need to understand is that there is no ‘on and off’ switch for this. It just comes and goes naturally.  And it is no shenanigan for anyone, whatsoever. We cannot control our thoughts but we can control the extent of these thoughts.   

Why do we indulge in overthinking?  

Anxiety, prior horrible experiences, and trust issues, mostly. No one enjoys overthinking, it is just an added pressure, among many other things. We like to drag our awful past ordeals and connect them with the present and the future. But whenever we’re approaching a high-end event that probably requires us to be at our best, we start imagining situations. The worst possible thing that can go down, how embarrassing the event attire can turn out, and other self-deprecating circumstances. We don’t have adequate research to base our thinking on, they are just mere baseless predictions. But our brain likes to pop up a least-likely-to-happen condition and get us contemplating about it. Maybe, it likes to prepare for the worst. Or, just give us a hard time when everything is actually going smoothly.  

Is there a way?  

We have thousands of thoughts per day, not all of them productive and rational. Following random thoughts for a long time can lead to poor mental health and decision-making. When you overthink, your judgement gets disrupted and your stress gets augmented. Basically, you get migraine, so headaches whilst facing tough situations for the rest of your life. So, better try some techniques that might prove helpful to combat it!  

Get Solution-Oriented on overthinking

Focusing on your problems will just make them look bigger. Instead of growing upwards, you will start heading backward and have to start all over from scratch. Maintain the emphasis on critical thinking as dwelling on your issues won’t be helpful, looking for the solution will be! Once you start practicing this, that’s the direction your mind will automatically take.  

Get Conscious

Yes, I know you’re conscious when you overthink but that’s not what I mean. Overthinking is such a habit that you don’t even know when you are doing it. Start noticing when are latched on to your subconscious thoughts. Start challenging your thinking so that you don’t get carried away by it. When you find yourself drifting to a world of random, useless thoughts, indulge in your favourite hobby! Write, draw, cycle, or whatever you feel like!  

Learn how to be mindful  

Often, when you’re in the middle of something, you start deliberating about the past and getting concerned about the future. So, you have to learn how to live only in the moment without brooding over futile things. Make time for reflection on a regular basis. Not the prolonged ones, but the brief periods can prove beneficial. Consider how you can improve your performance by doing things differently than you used to. Work towards creating a better version of yourself by detecting potential problems in your approach. This mindfulness can assist you in becoming more aware of the present.   

What happens next?  

No one knows. Except for your mind which is great at imagining scenarios. It actually works as the basis for virtual reality, you know? We are looking at things that simulate our real world but not taking place literally. The online difference is that virtual reality is a profitable business, but overthinking takes away our peace for free! So, I guess we stop enabling auto-updates to our overthinking software and try out these techniques. It can’t get worse, right? But there’s always scope for improvement.   

Some Quotes That Will Help You Counter Overthinking

“A positive atmosphere nurtures a positive attitude, which is required to take positive action.”  – Richard M. DeVos 

“Accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative, latch onto the affirmative.” – Bing Crosby 

Overthinking is something that can happen to anyone. It’s just how you deal with that phase. 

Stay Happy, Stay Positive, Try to Live Your Present, For That is Your Truth! 😊 

About Khushi:

A self-enthusiastic, college-going student, she is very keen to learn new things. Although still confused about her future goals, which we all are at her age, she wants to test herself in different domains. But a few things she is absolutely sure about, are writing, positive vibes, and watching the sky change colours beautifully. You can follow Khushi here and watch the space for more amazing content!

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