Flipping the Switch: 6 Ways that Help Me Turn Overthinking Off

Photo by Yung Chang on Unsplash

Having a busy brain all my life, thinking and overthinking came naturally to me. I didn’t even know that overthinking was a choice and that I had the power to turn it off. It certainly didn’t feel that way.

I learned on my journey that overthinking is relentless and insidious. It crept into my mind like kudzu- without permission and fast!

Photo by Emma Frances Logan on Unsplash

It took me some time; however, I was able to identify strategies that helped me flip the switch(es):

1. Increasing Awareness: I snapped a rubber band around my wrist when I was doing it to gauge the frequency of my overthinking. My awareness of the overthinking increased so that was a start. However, that was not enough.
2. Stop Future Screwing Myself: If the overthinking gets really out of control, I go into worst case scenerio thinking which means I am in gloom and doom. I paint myself into a frightful situation that my overthinking totally made up and then start to believe that that’s going to happen to me. I am future screwing myself because my anxiety grows and my behavior is dictated by false thoughts. I can make a lot of wrong decisions in this state if I am not cautious. I have to stop this thinking immediately and I do it with a number of other strategies below.
3. Getting Movement: I go to the gym or get outside for a walk. I have to move to let the anxious energy out and keep myself in a healthy state of being.
4. Laughing: Humor is a go to for me as I am witty and like a good pun. I might watch a comedy flick, do something fun, or surround myself with people who are funny.
5. Self-Talk: The way I talk to myself has to change when I am overthinking. I have to be gentle with myself. I talk to myself like I would talk to my son or someone else I care about. There is no space for shaming, shoulding, guilting, or beating myself up. These activities do not breed growth and serve no purpose except sabotaging my time.
6. Being Present: The only thing I have control over is the present moment. I cannot change the past. The future is uncertain. So, I do things that help me stay present like somatic work, drawing, walking barefoot outside (grounding), being in or around water, letting go of worries by writing them down and throwing them away, etc.

What tools are in your tool kit that help you stop overthinking? I would love to know in the comments!

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