Overthinking is the number one enemy of a confident person. It destroys your self-esteem and can destroy relationships. How do you know if you are an overthinker? If you are not sure, you have come to the right place. Well, many signs you are overthinking can be found by just looking at yourself.
Before we get into it, let’s first understand what an overthinker is..
What is “Overthinking”?
Overthinking is a state of mind in which you are constantly questioning your thoughts about the past, future, and current events. It can be difficult to stop overthinking at times because you’re so focused on what could go wrong or what you should have done differently.
The main sign of being stuck in an overthinking state is having to constantly go back and revisit the same thoughts. Overthinking means that you’re not focusing on what’s happening around you right now. If it’s an issue for you, these 5 indications can probably help you understand if you are doing it.
5 Signs You Are Overthinking
1. Overreacting
You are an overthinker because you will overreact to every little thing. Have you ever noticed that you get stressed over nothing? If so, you are an overthinker. You will spend a lot of time replaying what happened and criticizing it rather than taking the time to look at what caused the original reaction.
When you don’t take time to self-reflection you become reactive and have a hard time controlling your emotions.
2. Being Emotionally Unstable
Another of the signs you are an overthinker is that you have constant anxiety and mood swings. When you have constant anxiety and mood swings you are thinking a lot of things in your head. You are having a hard time relaxing and letting go of your overreactions.
This added thoughts can lead to a host of other symptoms such as insomnia, extreme optimism (which leads to overthinking) and depression. You also may have digestive problems as a direct result of your overworking mental health. All of these signs point to overwork and poor mental health.
3. You Are A Perfectionist
You are an overthinker because you are a perfectionist and you are always on the lookout for every little thing to be right. If you are one of these people, then you are going to waste a lot of time thinking about how your work should be done or what your customers really think about a product.
Everyone has little mistakes that they don’t think through, but for you, every single thought is absolutely perfect. Even when you miss a play or a good chance to make a great shot, you feel like you should have done it just as well.
You have trouble letting go of your overthinking ideas and this can lead to depression, self-pity and suicidal thoughts. If you don’t stop overthinking, you will experience all the signs I have mentioned and more. All these unnecessary thoughts can lead to a cluttered mind that leads to overwork and a poor mental state.
Read also: Overthinking Kills Your Happiness And What To Do About It..
4. Constant State of Stress
Your surrounding or work environment is impacting you more than you think. If you are constantly being in a state of stress and frustration, you are most likely overthinking. You spend your days running around, dealing with things that don’t matter to you, making decisions about things you know nothing about and generally being stressed out.
When it comes to work, you get easily frustrated with yourself and this causes you to have excessive amounts of self-doubt. If you want to stop overthinking, you have to learn to stop second guessing yourself and realize that most of your beliefs are actually correct. You just need to realize that all those negative beliefs you have are actually harming you instead of helping you.
In addition to your life being consumed by your overthinking, your sleep and rest may be affected as well because you are so focused on what you’re doing. If this happens, you are likely suffering from the symptoms of overworking and under-stimulation.
5. Making Difficult Decisions
People tend to overthink because they put themselves in a position where they need to make a decision. This is not always necessarily an easy task because there can be many factors that come into play and could impact the outcome of the decision.
This mental barrier is often seen when people are faced with a dilemma. They may try to avoid this barrier by not making the decision at all, which only prolongs the time it takes to come up with an answer or solution.
If you are ever in a position to make big decisions and you have been obsessing it for a prolonged period of time, it is best to take a break from the problem and allow your brain to rest. This will give you the opportunity to come back with a fresh perspective.
Can Overthinking Be Helpful or Harmful?
In recent years, there has been a rise in the popularity of mindfulness, a school of thought which preaches the importance of being in the moment and not thinking too much about things.
This comes as a reaction to our hectic schedules and 24/7 access to technology. But it is important not to reject thinking altogether. What we think about can have a huge impact on our lives.
It can be easy to fall into the trap of overthinking, but it can have serious consequences on your mental health.
The dangers of overthinking are many. It can affect your sleep, social interaction, and creativity. It also leads to anxiety and depression which are two of the most common mental illnesses in the world.
But there are also positives aspects of over-thinking, such as making us more productive and creative. However, in general, it does more harm than good.
How to Break Out of an Overthinking Rut & Rethink Your Thinking Patterns
There are many reasons for why people tend to overthink. It can be anything from stress, depression, feeling overwhelmed, or simply being too perfectionistic. Regardless of why you are overthinking, it is important to be able to identify your thoughts and then break free from them.
The best way to do this is by starting with the following four questions:
– What am I trying to figure out? Is there a deadline?
– Do I really need longer than 5 minutes?
– What do I think I am doing? Am I planning or creating?
– Am I really learning anything new or is this just plain old analysis paralysis?
Anytime you find yourself in a stressful situation, break the pattern immediately with these simple question. Don’t let your thoughts go spiraling down. Create this new habit by practicing constantly.
Conclusion
You have the habit of thinking about things in a certain way, so you can’t see outside of your own perspective.
This is when you need to break the cycle and try to see things from a different perspective.
While thinking about something, sometimes it might be best to stop and take a break. Go watch a movie, go for a run or even just hang out with your friends.
If you find it helpful, ask someone for their opinion on something or read about an alternative perspective on the topic.