Overthinking often involves both having a lot of thoughts that keep spinning around in our head and over-analyzing those thoughts. It can be a function of the type of thoughts we have as well as the thinking patterns we develop over time. It can also be a sign that we are experiencing fear, stress, or anxiety.
While there are obvious signs of being an overthinker, like feeling scattered or that you cannot slow the thoughts down, there are other signs that may not be so obvious.
Here are 3 not so obvious signs you may be an overthinker:
1. You may feel a lack of control
Overthinking often comes from a sense of not feeling in control. Our brain leads us to believe that if we can just think our way through a problem, we’ll be able to control the outcome. That’s both true and not so true. While we do have control over how we respond, we don’t have control over how others respond. And there’s no amount of thinking that will ever change that. One way to move through this feeling of lack of control is to focus on what we do have control over.
2. You may feel exhausted
When the brain works overtime to try to figure things out, the body may not be doing much. Or so it seems. But the brain controls everything. And when our brain is hard at work, it can cause our body to become fatigued. So even when all we’ve been doing is thinking, we can feel both mentally and physically exhausted. One way to move overcome the exhaustion that comes from thinking too much is to take a pause (or two or a hundred) during the day to notice what is happening in that moment: notice our body, our breath, our thoughts.
3. You may second-guess yourself
Overthinkers tend to take a long time to make decisions. They think about all the possible scenarios of what could happen and all the possible outcomes (usually the negative or undesirable ones). But once a decision is made, the overthinker may second-guess that they made the best one. This of course can lead to more overthinking about what should have been done or what could be done, causing a never-ending vicious cycle. One way to combat second-guessing is to adopt an attitude that you can handle anything that comes your way…and change your mind if a decision doesn’t go as planned.
When you start to notice these not so obvious signs of overthinking, it may be easier to employ strategies to overcome overthinking and keep it at bay.
To learn more about Overthinking, check out these other articles: 3 Costs of Overthinking, 3 Benefits of Overthinking, and 5 Steps to Overcome Overthinking.
If you’re a woman in Arizona and want support overcoming you’re overthinking, check out the Overthinkers Group for Women.
