Sometimes life throws the unexpected at us and we are forced to change our plans. That’s when our brains explode into action.
Overthinking is part of the survival strategy! We all, from time to time, find ourselves in situations where we have to think of a ‘Plan B’, second guessing our own decisions and making new ones, often as we go along. The problem is, overthinking can be detrimental to mental health.
It’s too easy to find ourselves stuck in a never-ending spiral of ‘what-ifs’. For instance, you may find yourself trying to ‘read people’ and getting stressed and anxious when you can’t work out their true feelings.
As if that isn’t bad enough, you start second guessing your own decisions — you ask others for advice and then procrastinate over whether that advice is sensible or not, often trying to understand the root cause of that advice. A blunt reply may make you question if someone is upset with you, or worse, watching their own backs.
You might also start planning conversations in your head and think about the different ways those conversation might go. Then you’ll inevitably find yourself worrying if any change of plan might makes things worse.
If you start fixating on things you can’t control, change, or just improve, you will start to imagine the worst case scenario or outcome. Then, you will begin to second guess decisions you’ve made and replay any mistakes in your mind.
The overall result of this is that it will inevitably drive you mad! We are all human and there will always be times when we overthink things — and that is completely normal. But when overthinking starts to have an impact on your daily life, and more important, on your mental health, it is useful to understand and develop strategies to manage it.
Overthinking can affect the way you experience and engage with the world and prevent you from making the right decisions. It can also drain you of the energy you need to handle the normal stresses and strains of everyday life.
Stress and anxiety will prevent you from making the kind of decisions and choices that aid your growth… but it doesn’t have to be that way!
Fixating on things you can’t control, change, or improve… imagining worst case scenarios or outcomes, and second guessing other people’s decisions and actions… even replaying your own perceived mistakes in your mind will not help. What will be will be. So make the best of it and chill!