Do you often find yourself overthinking into oblivion? Do you often think that something could go wrong even if there are no red flags or warning signs? Don’t worry, it happens. But it is important to acknowledge that overthinking can cause unnecessary problems.

When you overthink, your judgement gets cloudy and your stress gets elevated whilst spending too much time focusing on the negative. If this happens to you, we have created a list of ways to free yourself from overthinking…

1. Awareness

Before you begin to address or cope with overthinking, you need to be aware of when it’s happening. Whenever you find yourself doubting yourself or feeling stressed or anxious, you need to step back and evaluate the situation, i.e. look at the bigger picture.

2. Don’t focus on the negative

Overthinking is often caused by fear, so when you focus on the negative things that might happen, it’s easy to become paralysed by it. Next time you feel like you’re spiralling in a negative direction, stop. Think about everything that can go right, and keep those thoughts present and upfront.

3. Distraction

Some say distractions are bad but sometimes it’s helpful to have a way to distract yourself with happy, positive, healthy options. Try things like meditation, dancing, exercise or something that releases happy vibes!

4. Perspective

Trying to stop yourself from overthinking is easier said than done, and it’s easy to make mountains out of molehills. The next time you make things bigger than they are, ask yourself how much it will matter in five years or in 5 days. Thinking about this simple question and changing the time frame can reduce overthinking.

5. Perfection

For those who are waiting for perfection, stop right now! Being ambitious and confident is great but aiming for perfection is unrealistic, impractical and nerve-wracking. Waiting for perfection is never as smart as making progress.

6. Change

Whether you’re afraid of failing because you’ve failed in the past or you’re fearful of trying to overgeneralising some other failure, you need to remember that just because things did not work out before does not mean every outcome will result in failure. Change your view by looking at every opportunity as a new beginning.

Overthinking can also mean that you care deeply about whatever it is you’re feeling or going through but don’t let it consume you.