Over Thinking

 have a sister she is principal of school, like many hard-working professionals, she enjoys developing herself and others. She also adores diving into new ideas and is energized by consuming information.

This ability to take in and process the world more deeply is particularly strong in the type of professionals who identify as what are—high achievers who think and feel everything more deeply.

As a sensitive person my sister has many strengths. Sensitive persons like my sister tend to be perceptive, observant, empathetic, and conscientious. Her sensitivity, combined with her drive to succeed, is what makes her a powerhouse performer.

On the other hand, because of  depth of processing, sensitive person often struggle to halt overthinking, or the tendency to think too much or too long about a subject. 

While  my sister is sensitive person is often applauded for the way she explores different angels of different problems.This over thinking pushes her into doubt and indecision.

 Worst of all sometimes her work bled into her personal time, and my sister has trouble “shutting off” her brain at night.

Here are several strategies I shared with my sister that can help anyone who is struggling with over thinking. 

Naming ones patterns of overthinking and then reframing them helps improve ones perspective so that one can see new possibilities and find solutions instead of hitting mental dead . 

How to reframe: Look for nuance in situations. When ones mind presents only two forks in the road, slow down, and ask if one might be missing some options.

One must reframe problems  Stop using extreme words like “always,” “never,” “all” and “every.” Treat events in isolation; just because something happened once doesn’t mean it will happen again.

Whenever one find oneself lost in unhelpful thoughts, one can use a pattern interruption technique to ease one self out of an overthinking spiral. 

Visualize one worries or fears as floating away in a balloon or drifting away down a stream. 

Friends reframing problems of over thinking and pattern recognition in over thinking are strong tools one can use to halt over thinking in day to day life. 

Sukarma Thareja

Alumnus IITK

India

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