Overthinking. Why?

Overthinking. We all tend to do it. As the old saying goes… we turn mountains into molehills. But why? Why is it so difficult for us to just let things be what they are? Why do we have to over-analyze everything about a situation until we’ve turned it into something that stresses us out and worries us to death?

I’ve learned that women tend to do this WAY more than men. We want to figure out hidden meanings behind actions and words that most likely aren’t even there. Then we have to figure out how to counteract with our own actions and words based on our own theory of what the others in our situation are doing and feeling. More times than not, it ends up being a tangled web of nonsense that we make up in our heads because we need SOMETHING to explain what we are feeling. It’s usually insecurity.

I feel like we have been doing this for centuries… and it always boils down to communication of course. Instead of being able to have a conversation, or talk about whatever we’re thinking or feeling about a situation… for whatever reason… maybe we’re afraid of a reaction, maybe we don’t like conflict, maybe we’re shy, or any number of reasons, we keep it all inside and create any number of potential outcomes in our heads. Do you do this, too? It’s like having a dream that your spouse cheated on you and then waking up angry. You KNOW it was a dream. It didn’t really happen. But you’re still mad. That’s what we do to ourselves when we over think everything. It’s like we break our own hearts over and over and over with things that may not happen. Or things that have happened and we would like to do over differently. I hate that I do this to myself. But how do you stop?

The ‘What if’ life is the worst. We have to start being more focused on living in the here and now. Enjoying the present. Being grateful for life. We need to stop trying for perfection and be happy with who we are. I know…: it’s easier said than done, and it’s something I need to work on myself. I think the biggest thing we can do is learn to be confident and happy with ourselves. A lot of overthinking tends to come from self-.esteem issues. We are unsure of ourselves so we question others. Right? I do it, and I’m pretty damn sure of myself most times, so I can imagine how it must be for someone less sure of who they are.

Here’s where I would start…. when your thoughts start going to that place, redirect. Have something very specific that you MAKE YOURSELF think about instead. Count to 100. Write down recipes. Do sit ups. Listen to music. Whatever it takes to redirect the negative energy. If it won’t matter in a year, don’t spent another minute on it. THE END. Think about the things that REALLY matter. Trust me I’m working on this, too. Do you have things that help you when you’re overthinking? I’d love to hear them. 👇👇👇 Maybe we can all learn how to make better use of our brain time.

Xoxoxo

Annie