Overthinking, also known as rumination, occurs when you dwell on the same thought or situation over and over again to the point where it interrupts with your life. Overthinking usually falls into two categories: ruminating about the past or worrying about the future and lucky me, I fall into both categories. Overthinking is something we all do at some point. Everyone worries at least once in their life, overthinking doesn't necessarily mean when you overthink about your grades or future. When you compare your limits to someone else’s strengths, you are overthinking. When you obsess over someone else’s “irrational beliefs,” you are overthinking. When we overthink, we over plan and when we over plan, we overfill our life. I'm an overthinker, and there's no limit to how much I can think about. I think about the most irrelevant things, from the time I almost drowned when I was four to what my life will be like in 20 years. Overthinking has never come to me in a positive way; it is always related to bad or negative thoughts. I mean, who ever overthinks in a positive way? When asked what I should do in this situation, I was always told to "just don't think about it" or "do something to distract yourself." These words are easy to say but really hard to put into action. We are thinking all the time, and yet, we never think about how much time we spend thinking. That might sound like an addiction and if you relate, don't worry because you are not alone. When I eat too much, I would tell myself “I’m overeating, I need to eat less”. When I study too much, I would say “I’m dying, I need to stop studying”. But when I think too much, I can’t just say “I’m overthinking.” I need a different approach to unclog my brain. But the problem is that we don’t consider overthinking as a problem. When someone says that overthinking is bad, we often assume that only negative thoughts are wrong. And by that definition, it automatically means that positive thoughts are good. I think most of us agree that negative thoughts are related to Worrying, Complaining, Anger, Feeling sorry for yourself or Blaming others. Similarly, we can agree that trying to solve problems, Studying, Understanding knowledge, Planning, Visualization and Setting goals are positive thoughts. What most self-help advice says is, scrap the negative thoughts and double down on the positive thoughts. This might sound like good advice but the truth is that when you overuse your brain, just like a drain, it can get clogged. And this will result in Foggy thinking which leads to bad decision making. All that being said, how can you actually help yourself to think less? Researchers have found a 4 step process to stop overthinking..
Allow yourself to forget about yesterday and tomorrow. No matter how much you want to accomplish in the future, or how much you've suffered in the past, appreciate the fact that you are alive. Melina M
16 Comments
paige
11/18/2022 01:46:22 pm
I like this blog a lot! It's really interesting how you brought up that overthinking about positive things in negative for us as well. I think it's really well written, thank you!
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aleyna
11/18/2022 01:49:47 pm
i think this topic is very important to talk about overthinking is something i struggle with al ot in my daily life and the steps to minimize that in your blog is very helpful
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Lina
11/18/2022 01:51:26 pm
I can relate to this blog, even though I don't overthink as much but I catch myself at least once a month lying in bed at night bright awake and overthinking. I will try to include the four step method you mentioned in my every day life and see if my overthinking will become less :)
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Hewitt
11/18/2022 01:52:31 pm
Thank you for sharing. I usually use these tricks when I'm overthinking too. They are very helpful. Its nice to know I'm not the only one who over thinks.
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Amelia Holifield
11/18/2022 01:52:53 pm
I really like the topic you picked. I think its something a lot of people struggle with but nobody really ever talks about. I appreciate you opening up about it because it is something I really struggle with as well. I also appreciate that you wrote some steps that can help with overthinking. Good job Melina!
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olivia
11/18/2022 01:53:31 pm
Thank you for sharing, This was very well written and very relate able. I am also an over thinker (in both categories as well.) I've never thought of a way to stop it or slow it down. i will definitely try using the 4 step process. Thank you!
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Luis
11/18/2022 01:54:32 pm
I enjoyed a lot your blog since it not only focus in a very important topic, but it also shows through a list of steps, how to stop overthinking from an overthinker perspective.
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Aimée
11/18/2022 01:55:48 pm
thru this blog I learned a lot of new things. Not just that I am not alone as a over thinker, but also how to limit my crazy thoughts and worries. Thank you for the hints and for the effort in this blog, it is probably really helpful for everyone!
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Clare
11/18/2022 01:58:14 pm
Overthinking is something so many of us do, but of course no one will ever know that you're doing. It interested me how you talked about overthinking on the 'positives' is not always a good thing. You have a great attitude! I absolutely love the ending of your blog as well - how you know how life is a gift.
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anna
11/18/2022 02:00:38 pm
I can deffinetly relate to this and have stuggled with it before. There is a whole community who deals with this and we are not alone but not many people bring it up and I think its great you did.
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paula
11/18/2022 02:04:42 pm
It is a very eye-opening blog that there are so many people who overthink a lot. Even that nearly everyone in the comments said that they are overthinking too. I definitely think that's a topic we should talk about more often.
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Quinn
11/18/2022 02:08:04 pm
I really liked how you went into so much detail, and also bad some ways to help stop it as well. a lot of poeple struggle with overthinking but i don't think ive seen ways to stop it so thank you for sharing about it!
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Konstantin
11/18/2022 02:09:30 pm
I think this topic is very important, because everyone catches himself while overthinking. In my case I have some moments when overthinking is positive for me or a situation gets way better because I thought about it a lot. But I don’t exactly know if this is overthinking anymore. Mostly the best solution for me is to speak with a friend about it.
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Portia
9/28/2023 02:03:36 pm
Overthinking is something I think everyone experiences, it's good to be aware of when it's happening and how to control it. Trying to limit the time we spend thinking about topics that may upset us by distractions or writing our feelings down is a good idea to help reduce how much we overthink.
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izzy
9/28/2023 02:06:47 pm
This is very eye-opening to me as i am also a person that tends to overthink a lot. This made me realise that when it comes to this feeling, I am not alone. Thank you for sharing this journey of yours and providing tips to handle the situation. I will be using these!
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yes overthinking is something everyone has experienced at least once in their life and for me this occurred pretty often last year because with school and my future. some ways i can stop myself from overthinking would also to be from your blog is to enjoy life, stop thinking about the past or future and start enjoying the present so you can think about the good times you've had now when your older.
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