With the increasing demand for perfection and aesthetically pleasing outcomes in the world today, overthinking is gradually becoming a mental burden that many people are forced to carry. Hence, even more people are now looking for a quick solution for how to stop overthinking.
In a bid to avoid mistakes or to avoid appearing incompetent, do you find yourself regularly stuck in your head? You’re always replaying your conversations, second-guessing your decisions, and obsessing over a million worst-case scenarios. Or are you always stalling whenever it is time to take action? Then you’re not alone. This blog will help you overcome that limiting habit of overthinking.
Overthinking is somewhat the brain’s way of trying to save you from hurtful experiences like shame, failure, or pain. However, it is actually more dangerous than we think it is. For one thing, it leaves you as helpless as one who is lazy and unwilling to make any significant move in life, no matter how talented or ambitious you are.
Read the second section of this blog to see the real dangers of overthinking. You’ll be shocked!
Also, if you are a Christian and you’ve not learned how to stop overthinking, you’ll overrule your ability to genuinely trust the Lord and let Him help make your life less complicated. Remember Proverbs 3:5 (Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding)?
So, in this post, we’ll understand the root causes of overthinking, how to stop overthinking, and a simple 3-day challenge to help you practice what you’ll learn.
Why You Overthink Everything
Here are a few of the reasons you’ll often find yourself overthinking:
- Fear of making mistakes or being judged by other people for your actions.
- Perfectionism that cripples you from taking action, but rather allows those ideas and decisions to sit in your head for ages, all in the name of planning.
- Lack of confidence in your abilities and God’s faithfulness to step into your situation.
- Unhealed emotional wounds or past trauma that give you analysis paralysis, causing your brain to overanalyze everything just to keep you from getting hurt again.
- Over-identifying with your thoughts or giving them more credence than they should have by thinking that every single thought must be pointing to something serious.
6 Ways to Stop Overthinking Everything
Deal with the roots
Take another look at these things that could be causing you to overthink everything. Now, answer, what is causing you to overthink?
You’ll need to take some time to reflect and figure out the root cause of your overthinking. Use these journal prompts as a guide to navigate that exploration.
Get Rid of the Assumptions
Most of the time, to stop overthinking, you need to get rid of the imaginary future that habit thrives on. You’re probably over-emotionalizing what could be over what really is, hence your overthinking habit.
When you get the urge to dwell on something for too long, divert your attention to what is currently happening with you and strategize your next line of effective actions using what you have.
Close the Tabs
Every time you revisit a matter or decision, you use up valuable energy and keep yourself in that loop of overthinking.
So, as soon as a matter arises, quickly decide on it and close the tab on your mind. Unless that matter involves other people’s input, don’t go back to it until you take definitive action on it.
Give Your Thoughts Somewhere to Go
Yeah, I know. Some thoughts can be pretty stubborn and won’t go away, so it can be hard to really practice how to stop overthinking with those kinds of thoughts.
In this case, you need to take those stubborn or lingering thoughts somewhere else. Write them down in your journal (and explore it in-depth), pray about it, or discuss it with someone you trust.
By taking your thoughts somewhere else, you give your brain enough room to properly rummage through and then process that line of thought. Consequently, you close that tab automatically.
Act Right Away
Sometimes, those lingering thoughts are simply looking for a way to find expression in the physical world. So, what you need to do with them is to take action immediately.
When you take action, you not only allow that thought to find physical expression, but you also allow yourself enough avenues to challenge the belief behind your overthinking and properly process the thought for future reference.
3-Day Overthinking Detox Challenge
This 3-day overthinking Detox Challenge is my loving way of helping you put what we’ve discussed into practice.
Day 1 – Dump and Analyze
Today, you will write down everything cluttering your mind and causing you to overthink day and night. Whether they’re past conversations, past experiences, fears, decisions, or regrets. Write them all out.
Afterwards, analyze each of those thoughts you’ve written and begin to question them. Are they true? Where did they come from? Under what belief are they hiding in your mind? Are they within your control?
Day 2 – The 2-Minute Decisions
Today, you’ll make between 1 and 3 decisions (big or small) concerning matters that have lingered in your mind for more than a few days.
The catch? You’ll make these decisions in under 2 minutes, and you won’t revisit them ever again. They can be decisions like what to wear, what to mirror, or how to respond to a text.
Day 3 – One Immediate Action
Today, you’ll take immediate action on the first thing that comes to your mind. You can choose from your to-do list, your New Year’s resolutions, or even from those items that have been keeping you up at night.
After taking that action, take some time to journal how you felt doing it.
Conclusion
If you’ve been wondering how to stop overthinking, I hope you’ve gotten your answer.
Your mind is not a prison; it is supposed to help you take necessary action (when you should), so that you can enjoy the rewarding experience of an intentional life.
