Are you an overthinker? It’s normal for you to have a few obsessive thoughts, as you’re only human. Sadly, there comes the point where these intrusive thoughts consume you, and the issue can become chronic. Overthinking is classic for anxiety disorders, and the same part of your brain that gives you the fight or flight sensation also causes you to overanalyze things.
10 Signs of Overthinking and How Overthinkers Can Calm Their Worried Minds
Ruminating about every little thing can be exhausting. Your mind never shuts down, and it can make for some long, sleepless nights. Since this is an anxiety-based disorder, it can cause your mental health to plummet. According to the Cleveland Clinic, an overthinking disorder is recognized by the American Psychological Association and is included in the DMS-5.
It’s a sister disease to post-traumatic stress, generalized anxiety, and obsessive-compulsive syndrome. The first step to realizing you have a problem is identifying the key issues and seeing if they fit your symptoms. Here are the ten most common signs that you’re constantly overthinking, and there are some ways to fix it.
1. Overthinking Means That You Wear Your Emotions on Your Sleeves
A significant problem for overthinkers is that they wear their emotions on their sleeve. You take the opinions of others way too seriously, and it drives you crazy.
You’re analyzing each detail of events and conversations, and you always think someone is putting you down. If you have an empathetic personality, this will make you even more sensitive to the opinions of others.
How to fix it
It’s helpful to have someone else to toss around your thoughts with on a situation. A voice of reason can help you to decipher if you ruminate unnecessarily or if you have justification for your intense feelings.
2. You Worry About Things That Haven’t Even Happened Yet
An idea pops into your mind, but the thought overwhelms you. You ruminate about it so much that you get all worked up to the point of an anxiety attack. For instance, your friends and neighbors are receiving higher electric bills due to an increase.
You begin to think about how you will constantly pay such a bill. You remember events where the lights were left on all night, and you analyze the temperature you set your HVAC system at during the month. You work yourself into an anxious frenzy because you can’t stop worrying about something that hasn’t even happened yet.
How to fix it
According to Dr. Robert Leah’s book The Worry Cure, over 85 percent of the things you worry about won’t happen anyway. You only waste your time and energy focusing on something that probably won’t be an issue. Stop catastrophizing events that may not warrant it. Instead, write in a journal, listen to music, or read a chapter of your favorite book.
3. Overthinking Burdens Those Around You
When your emotions are on high alert, and you’re always nervous and analyzing things, it’s hard to live with you. If your spouse is a sensible thinker, they might have difficulty relating to your overthinking ways. If you have this anxiety disorder, you might enjoy working solo, as it causes you less worry about later.
How to fix it
You don’t want to burden the ones you love. It would help if you found an outlet for all this overthinking. Journaling is a great way to …
Click here to read this complete article.
