Are You An Overthinker? Here's What It Can Do To You And How You Can Stop Overthinking

If you start to worry excessively without trying towards calm yourself down, you're an overthinker. Repetition of recurrent thoughts which interfere with your day-to-day functioning is known as overthinking. Your brain is responsible for being active at all major times of the day but divides its attention in two ways; consciously and subconsciously. While you are asleep or not doing any work, the brain tends to work subconsciously. But if you attempt to think all times of the day without taking any rest, it causes the brain to not function well. This can happen in the case of two broad perspectives:

1. Contemplating what has happened: When one starts to dwell about what has happened in their past, they end up overthinking and find it difficult to focus on the present.

2. Being concerned about what is going to happen: The same way as contemplating about the past, people generally worry so much about their future that they end up losing direction on what's happening in the present.

What makes you an overthinker?

People develop the habit of overthinking due to a variety of reasons surrounding them, some of them can be:

1. When you get into a fight with someone, you worry about being hurt or making others feel bad.

2. When you lose an argument and you start ruminating on how you could have won it.

3. You tend to worry about things beyond your control.

Worrying about things beyond your control can make you an overthinker
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4. You seek to find the buried context behind people's motives on what they say or how they act.

5. You wish for the things you could have said to make things better with someone.

6. Sometimes you get trapped and twisted in the entire 'if' and 'but'.

7. You ruminate about the missteps you've taken so far.

8. You abide yourself to live in your past.

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How can you stop overthinking?

If you can observe and connect to the majority of these signs and symptoms of overthinking, you are not alone. There are so many people out there who feel the same, but this does not mean you can't do anything about it. Following are some effective many ways to stop overthinking.

1. Practice problem-solving

You can move your foot forward by practicing techniques of problem-solving. While thinking about a problem or something which bothers you, find time to anticipate how you can resolve this issue without overthinking about it.

Practice problem solving to stop overthinking
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2. Reflect on your thoughts

The fact that you don't think about your problems through makes you want to worry about it more. Hence, you can try reflecting on your thoughts and making a decision about whether is it really in your hands to control it or not. This strategy helps you filter out your thoughts.

Also read: Stress And Infertility: Know The Link Between The Two

3. Observe yourself when you are thinking redundantly

Once you learn to recognise yourself better and know about how you attempt to react to situations, you will soon realise that not everything you do is worth putting a second thought and certain things are meant to be the way they are.

4. Meditate

Researchers say that practicing meditation techniques helps a person to soothe their mind effectively. This way they learn to refine or separate important thoughts from the ones that aren't important. Trying out meditation techniques for at least 20 minutes a day can help you calm and think easily and thoroughly.

5. Distract yourself

Diverting your attention from the things that bother you can be an effective strategy to cope with the tendency of overthinking. You can do so by being a part of different activities like playing a sport, making art, swimming and many more.

Also read: How Stress In Early Life Can Lead To Depression Later

6. Talk to someone

You should keep in mind that there is always someone for you to listen to your talks when you are up to the wall about something. Share your thoughts with the people you trust and learn to respect their positive opinions.

Disclaimer: This content including advice provides generic information only. It is in no way a substitute for qualified medical opinion. Always consult a specialist or your own doctor for more information. NDTV does not claim responsibility for this information.