How to Stop Overthinking and Relax

For those who have found themselves overthinking a lot, please know that this is very common. It’s “to think about something too much or for too long.” To avoid it leading to negative and stressful thinking, Linda shares some tips on how to turn it into something useful, productive, and effective instead, in How to Stop Overthinking and Relax.

Be Aware of Your Overthinking

If you know that you’ve been overthinking, well that’s good! Because you can only start working on an issue if you’re aware of it. This is actually the biggest step — the knowing. Once you are aware of your overthinking or even when you’re feeling anxious or stressed, take a step back and really look at how you are responding towards these feelings. Then, try these approaches:

Focus on the good possibilities

Stop Overthinking: Change your story, you’ll change your life.

While it’s human nature to think things through when making a decision or evaluating a situation, it becomes overthinking when you can’t get out of your own head. Tony Robins says, “To overcome your limiting beliefs, you need to first identify them. Then you can catch yourself when you start telling yourself these negative stories and replace them with positive ones, like “I am in charge of my emotions.” Once you change your story, you’ll change your life.

Distract yourself into happiness

Why do you think that people with hobbies seem happier? Because they are! There’s evidence that fun distractions contribute to good health. One study showed that people who engage in hobbies enjoy better moods, feel more interested, and have less stress and lower heart rates—even hours after the recreation time.
Try this: Every month, pick something new to try. It could be sport (cycling and golf is good because you don’t have to rely on others’ availability to play), art (painting, sculpting, woodwork), baking (maybe a new recipe every week), or a new musical instrument. The aim is to eventually find something that will ‘stick’ and before you know it you will be working towards new goals like getting better at your new hobby.

Change your view of fear

Just because you’ve failed at something in the past, doesn’t mean you’ll fail again. And the good news is, the experience of having failed at something would have given you the hindsight to do better next time. Always remember that every opportunity is a new beginning, a place to start again.

Focus on solutions

As Tony says, “Identify your problems, but give your power and energy to solutions.” You’ve identified the real reasons for your stress and anxiety, but your work isn’t done. The only way to learn how to stop overthinking for good is to take charge of your life. If your overthinking is caused by stress at work, rethink your career path. If you’re not where you want to be in life, set goals for yourself so that you can get there. If you feel like life is out of your control, make a decision today to get back behind the wheel. These are big moves, and they take guts. Remember: No one controls your reality but you – don’t you want your life to be extraordinary?

Be grateful

If there is a step that you should not skip, it is this one. Because gratitude is so much bigger than you think. According to psychologists, thanking others, thanking ourselves, Mother Nature, or the Almighty, in fact gratitude in any form can enlighten the mind and make us feel happier. It has a healing effect on us.
Try this: Every night before bed, think of 5 things you are grateful for and why.

For more advice and tips to prepare you for the dating and relationship world, watch this space. Is there something you would like to read about or a topic you would like us to cover? Please let us know.