Are you Overthinking? 7 Signs you are an Overthinker
- Do you constantly worry?
- Are you dwelling on things you’ve said or done?
- Can’t sleep at night cause your thoughts are keeping you awake?
- You can’t let go of situations?
- Are you constantly thinking about stuff that happened in your past?
- You care way too much about what other people think about you?
CONGRATULATIONS
You might be an overthinker
In this post you’ll learn:
- Why you are an overthinker
- Why overthinking is bad for you and
- How to stop overthinking
Let’s jump right into it…
To be honest with you, sometimes I still think about embarrassing moments that happened years ago – and to make matters worse: I still think about stupid what if’s, even though the other person probably doesnt even remember me anymore.
And this is exactly Why we should stop Overthinking: It doesn’t change anything at all!
Why are we Overthinking?
Often overthinking is connected to much deeper issues like depression and anxiety. In those cases, we have to work on the underlying issues. Or the following cases might be true for you:
We have To make a decision about something very important:
Whether it’s changing your job, moving to another city or raising a kid.
Big decisions have a huge impact on our life. We get insecure.
Is it the right decision? What are the pros and cons? What if I chose wrong.
The bigger the decision, the more likely we’ll overthink.
Fear
We overthink when we are afraid. Like when we:
- Take an exam
- Have a presentation
- Do a job interview
There are many causes of fear, such as uncertainty, fear of failure. When we are afraid we are prone to more overthinking.
We have low Confidence or Self Esteem:
In many cases overthinking comes from a low confidence level. You can check your self-beliefs and self-esteem by clicking the links. You might think
- Why does she suddenly behave that way, did I do something
- Does she mean the compliment?
- I’ll make a fool out of myself
- What if I mess up?
Like every bad habit we first need to find the cause of the issue: So look at your habit traits – where does your overthinking come from? By what is it triggered?
Why Overthinking is bad for you:
You will miss many amazing opportunities by overthinking.
Just like the 5 Second-Rule by Mel Robbins explains – if you don’t do it in less than 5 seconds your brain will find so many excuses .
Overthinking will not only make you regret all the things you did and didn’t do, you most likely won’t take a future opportunities and you’ll miss out.
You will start worrying about social situations:
Overthinking can actually make you scared of social situations.
- Am I wearing the right thing.
- Will the people like me?
- What could go wrong?
Overthinking might take the fun out of social gatherings and might even negatively impact your career, as you skip out on social events.
Don’t hold back because you worry about saying something wrong or looking stupid for stating your opinion. Once you stop overthinking, it won’t be as bad as you think. The same, by the way, goes for your behavior: Don’t overthink what people see when you eat in public.
Overthinking Drains your energy:
Thinking takes energy and so does overthinking. DO you really want to waste your energy on stuff that’s most likely just an illusion?
How to Stop Overthinking:
Short-Term Solutions:
If you are overthinking and struggle to sleep right now, you can do following things:
- Meditate – Try not to think, concentrate on your body and give your brain a break.
- Take a deep breath – in – out – in – out – get some distance from your thoughts
- Focus on sensations to stay in the present. The smell of flowers, how the blanket feels against your skin, the movement of the air.
- Tell yourself it is okay. Whatever happened , happened. You will be fine tomorrow. Maybe you’ll even have a fun story for your grandchildren.
- Get distracted – listen to audiobooks or music while falling asleep.
- Ask a friend for her opinion – she will tell you it’s nothing to worry about.
- Lock away your past. Take the thought and mentally throw it in a bin or lock it in a box. Don’t let thoughts about the past pester you.
- Write it down. Take the narrative of a good and kind friend. Was the situation really as bad as you make it out to be? Change your perspective.
- Work on a task. Without any goals or expectations. Just start. Don’t try to be perfect. Scratch that try to be rotten.
- Accept you ain’t perfect. Noone is and mistakes happen.
Long-Term Solution:
Build your self esteem: If self esteem is your main cause of overthinking – you won’t get around building your confidence level. But don’t worry! There are so many amazing people who can help you build your self esteem, a crazy amount of blogs to read, and amazing videos to watch. You can also find many self-development topics on this blog!
It probably will be a struggle at the beginning but don’t give it will get easier with time!
Yes! I’m an overthinking person. That’s why I’m having a hard time to relax. But I’m trying to change. Thank you for sharing your tips.
It’s a real struggle sometimes. I think with practice it really can be overcome. 🙂
I am definitely an overthinker and it can really get in the way; this was such a useful post to read and was much needed!
Thank you 🙂 Loved your post on negative thoughts. I think overthinking and negative thoughts often go hand in hand.
I am definitely an overthinker! It’s a bad habit that I first became aware of a couple of years ago and started focusing on trying to eliminate from my life. Of course, it’s not that easy – I wish it was. I am a work in progress. But even the work I’ve done so far has had such a positive impact on my life.
Hey Britt, so great to hear you made progress. I think having the self-awareness and starting to change is the most difficult part.
Do you have any tips for eliminating overthinking?