We’ve all found ourselves tossing and turning late at night as we replay a conversation in our head over and over again. Everyone overthinks sometimes but some people do it more than others. Those individuals may have underlying conditions such as anxiety disorders however over-thinkers don’t always do. Psychologist Catherine Pittman, author of Rewire Your Anxious Brain claims
"There are people who have levels of overthinking that are just pathological. But the average person also just tends to overthink things."
So what happens inside my head when I overthink?
Overthinking is NOT problem-solving
A problem occurs and a solution is needed, some people would go about solving problems using their guts and instinct whereas others would need to think of every possibilities before making a well thought-through decision. There isn’t a right or wrong method but there is a pitfall to avoid — overthinking the problem. Psychologists have shown that people often confuse overthinking with problem-solving. The more we dwell on a problem, the more likely we end up in a loop where thinking of all possible outcomes can take us further away from what we needed to resolve in the first place.
In fact, finding solutions to a problem doesn’t trigger overthinking. It is rather a reaction to the uncertainties we may have to face in the wake of an event. David Carbonell sums it up perfectly in his book The Worry Trick
"Because we feel vulnerable about the future, we keep trying to solve problems in our head."
So if you’ve had a fight with your boss. You start to freak out and tune into the worry channel. Your thoughts go in a loop like this: What if he fires me? I was really hoping to buy a house this year. What if I don’t get another job? What if this destroys my career? It can really take off.
Leave your amygdala alone
The amygdala is the the reptilian brain responsible for your “flight of fight” reaction. It can save us from being eaten by a tiger or hit by a car but it can also fuel our inner critique. Scientists have managed to link overthinking to parts of our brain that are involved in anxiety and fear — the amygdala being one of them. Pittman points out that the more we worry about something, the more we activate our amygdala. It causes us to interpret the events we experience as more dramatic than they really and we end up feeling it physically.
"The amygdala makes our heart pound. It makes us feel uneasy and gives us muscle tension."
As a result we also train our brain to focus on our negative thoughts and this can obviously put ourselves at risk of anxiety disorders in the future.
Change the soundtrack in your head
Overthinking is like a vacuum — it sucks you in. “It removes us from active participation,” says Carbonell. “The more we are engaged in overthinking, the less are we actually doing things in the physical environment.” However it is possible to overcome this thinking pattern by replacing our current thoughts with brand new ones. It is worth mentioning that if we are trying to eliminate a thought, it is even less likely to go away. In fact, the more we think about removing something from our head, the more it will persist. Pittman describes it brilliantly.
"What if we were to tell you to stop thinking about pink elephants? What are you going to think about? That’s right: pink elephants."
In other words, substituting a thought for another allows us to shift our focus and stops us from being caught inside the overthinking loop.
Similarly, if you find yourself overthinking something, try distracting yourself from the thoughts by filling your time. Call your parents, tackle a crossword puzzle, take your dog on a walk or read a book. Do anything to keep your mind otherwise occupied.
Notice, act, repeat
As with almost everything in this life, learning how to stop overthinking gets easier with practice. Becoming aware of our own thoughts and feelings can take us a long way and help us deal with overthinking. In fact, scientists advise us to spend more time noticing these moments where we feel like ruminating on a problem and act on them quickly. In other words, we should try to come up with quick fixes that we can easily act on.
"Do something in real time and real life rather than sitting and thinking" - Carbonell
In these uncertain times, it can be impossible not to spend an inordinate amount of time stressing about the state of the world but just remember that you won’t overcome the habit of overthinking in a few days. But with repeated practice, you will teach your mind to be calm during times of stress and not go into overdrive.
