Why is overthinking a slow poison?

Why is overthinking a slow poison?

Overthinking is a process of thinking about something (usually negative) too much. It drains our mental energy and prevents us from enjoying the present. It also affects our decision-making capabilities and peace of mind. Let me give you an example. We went on a team outing and I, along with my friends, went to bed early while other teammates were indulging themselves in different activities. I couldn’t sleep fearing what my team will think about me the next day. But, the following morning everybody spoke normally to me and I realized I had over-thought unnecessarily and ruined my night and my mind. 

Impact of overthinking on our day-to-day lives

Overthinking prevents us from making the right decisions and deviates our mind from reaching the right conclusions. It feels like every cell in our body is tensed and as if our heart is carrying a heavy rock. Unnecessary worrying about situations that haven’t even occurred in real life is something that we should worry about. Please don’t get me wrong. I am not telling that just because you overthink some circumstances; you are wrong. No. But when those thoughts intrude on your regular life, then it is a matter of concern. What is the proof that what you are thinking is going to be sculpted in to a real-life event?

I have had uncountable experiences where I over-thought unnecessarily and ended up regretting afterwards. Many of you are going to be on my side on this. I still laugh thinking about the time when I cried assuming that I will never get a passport in my life because of some error in my government ID card. Was the correction of ID possible? Yes. Did I know that? Also yes. But I panicked about it and disturb people asking for solutions.

How did I learn to control my thoughts?

The first thing that helped me is to register in my mind the thought that life will throw nothing at me I cannot handle. It felt very terrifying every time I over-thought about a situation. But when I finally got face to face with the same situation in real life, it made me rethink every thought that I let into my mind unessentially.

Another important aspect to remember is to live in the present rather than constantly worry about the future. I am no expert in “living in the moment” but I try to inculcate that habit in my life. It is challenging to not think about the future in this fast-paced world. The world will demand you to concentrate chiefly on the future, at the cost of your mental health.

Conclusion

There is no way to wholly control what our mind thinks. But it’s better to incorporate certain measures to prevent our thoughts from decaying our mind. Also, there is nothing wrong with taking help from a professional if you feel you need extra aid. And always remember, our mind is not right all the time.