Overcoming the overthinking mind
We live busy lives…
Well most of us perceive them to be busy lives. Always forward-thinking our next move. Constantly moving from one activity to the next with our mind racing from thought to thought trying to process as we go. Often never giving our mind a moment to rest in silence as it is persistently filled with stimulation in all shapes and forms. Our devices and vices; phones, TVs, computers, work, social lives, kids, and everything else in the world that is fighting for our attention.
This ongoing stimulation hijacks our attention, pulling us further away from ever giving ourselves time to reset and unwind. We become attuned to this fast pace lifestyle and block out the space for proper mental rest.
We think we are constantly busy however this state of being is a distorted perception that leads us to believe we have little time for anything else in our lives. How could I ever have time to cook myself nourishing meals every night or two? How could I ever fit in 20 minutes of mediation? How could I ever have the time to go for a long restorative walk in nature?
With our attention so externally controlled and our priorities mismanaged we live on the notion that we are busy all the time. When, in fact, a lot of this time is filled with nonsensical activities that serve no real purpose in our lives. Our minds keep racing which aligns with the false belief that we need constant stimulation to thrive.
This external overstimulation edges out our inner voice.
However, our inner voice needs its input on the matters in our life so it starts to fight for our attention, and the process of overthinking begins.
The war in our head has begun.
Anytime our inner voice gets an inch it tries to process as much of the built-up emotions as possible. It is aware that our attention will go elsewhere soon and so begins a vicious cycle with each thought trying to counteract the previous thought. This internal dialogue becomes a fast-paced argument with the two different sides of ourselves. These thoughts often contradict each other and we end up in a spiral of overthinking. Quite often never reaching an amicable solution because our attention gets hijacked not long after by a notification or other distraction. We never give ourselves adequate time to process these thoughts properly and in turn shove them to the back of our minds to be dealt with later.
We can go years without ever dealing with these thoughts as our constant busyness means we avoid having to ever deal with them. This creates a backlog of unresolved issues. These thoughts need to and want to be processed, so the next time they pop up into our mind they come with greater force and pressure to get them resolved.
I think we all know what happens when a backlog is created. It causes stress on the system and if never maintained will end in disaster.
If we don’t let the dam flow it will eventually burst.
Our mind is the dam for our emotions and deciphers these feelings into words/thoughts that we can understand. To let the mind free, we need to let the emotions flow and the overthinking filter through our system rather than being blocked in the mind. This moves the energy of these thoughts back into the emotional areas they originated to be dealt with accordingly, giving us space to use our mind productively.
I have been an overthinker for the majority of my life… as far back as I can remember. This overthinking has ruled my mind many times and generally, I sought externally to resolve my incessant overthinking mind. Constant numbing along with mindless distractions. It got to the point where I couldn’t contain these blockages. This resulted in bursts of anger and bouts of depression and anxiety, along with an overstressed system. I got sick and tired of living like this so decided to take the reins. I researched, trialled, and tested lots of different things, and in the process found some simple exercises that worked wonders for me and may work for you.
Below are some simple exercises I found to be effective to clear the blockages, reduce the noise, and help resolve the overthinking.
Writing down your thoughts
Writing down the thoughts that keep repeating in your mind until it’s all out of your mind. Write into a journal, your notes app on your phone or even write an email and send it to yourself. Writing our thoughts down helps to get them out of our minds. It also helps structure the thoughts so we can come to terms with them and realize how ridiculous our mind is sometimes. It’s a form of purging out the thoughts that are blocking the mind. It can help rationalize the situation that is causing you stress which in turn means you can see it from another angle.
Usually, I then throw out what I’ve written or I delete the note or email after rereading it. If it is something I really don’t want to think about or it’s really troubling me, I write it down and then burn the piece of paper as a symbol of removing the thoughts.
You can repeat the process as many times as possible until you feel lighter about the situation and/or have moved on.
Feeling your thoughts/emotions
Another way that is more accessible in the moment is to feel the thoughts in your body. We are one entire system and the mind is only one separate part of this system. The mind is often overloaded and unable to process the thoughts properly (thoughts in our mind can be reactions to emotions in our body and our way of deciphering these feelings is thoughts).
Simply feel the feeling that the thoughts make you feel.
So, a good way to do this is to close your eyes and think about feeling the feeling of the thought in your body and then sitting with this feeling until it moves away and settles. The feelings can manifest anywhere in your body. Give yourself at least 30–60 seconds. If you are angered by the thought of something, then let your body feel the anger. If you feel sad by a thought that crops up in your mind then decide to feel the sadness rather than bottle it up. It doesn’t make you weak. It helps you attune your thinking mind with your feeling body so that neither gets blocked.
Quite often for me, I feel a tightness in my chest or throat but it could show up anywhere in your system. It can be uncomfortable at the start to let your body feel these feelings but sit with it, let the body feel it out and then ask yourself if this thought/emotional reaction is still bothering you.
This is a skill to learn that will develop the more you practice. It is a really good way to transmute thoughts through the body rather than bottling them up in the mind. Again, repeat the process as many times as necessary until you feel it has moved on.
Meditation
A simple daily meditation practice. Even 1 minute a day is better than none. There are also plenty of good free apps out there on the market for this.
Meditation can be as simple as putting a timer on for the desired time (1–20+ minutes), sitting on a comfy chair, eyes closed, and just listening to what the mind has to say without reacting to the thoughts that pop up. Just hearing it out. Observing its patterns. Basically, being with yourself so you can have space to process whatever needs to be processed. This can be paired with using the body to feel the emotions of repetitive thoughts as a means to process them if there is an issue to deal with.
The above are three simple techniques that can be used whenever wherever.
Each of the three techniques is powerful alone but work even better when all used together. We don’t have to have a fancy journal and pens. We don’t need a specific meditation area and we don’t need to pay for some overpriced course to teach us to close our eyes and observe our mind. Just like getting physically fit takes time and effort, getting mentally and emotionally fit takes time and effort. To get on top of the overthinking mind a commitment to a consistent practice of either of these strategies will lead to long-term gains.
We simply need to prioritize what’s important in our lives. We need to give ourselves a release from the over-stimulation of the world by separating ourselves temporarily until we are largely in control of what floods our minds.
Our mind will and body will always challenge us but it is up to us to challenge ourselves to get on top of these lower emotional states and unwanted thought patterns that are holding us back.
When the dam of our mind is flowing, our energy is stabilized and able to be channelled towards productive fulfilling activities rather than drained by repetitive thoughts.
It’s time to let go and free your mind.
Because
When we let go we can move through life in a state of flow.
Peace.