Overthinking: how to stop to dwell on his thoughts

It is a pity that manage their own thoughts is not as easy as the body. Reason the clean and fresh as January air, the tenacious as taiga bog. If you often think about the same, you can not sleep and want to stay for a while your brain - it's called overthinking. That's why we get hung up on his thoughts and how to deal with it.

What is "overthinking"

According to neuropsychologist Dr. Kathy Davis, people who are prone to soul-searching, can not regulate and switch attention from a particular thought or object of his anxiety. They are easily distracted during the day, often can not concentrate on work.

One little thing can knock a man out of a rut, it is unable to do something, yet will not solve your problem, or will not stop thinking about her.

How to stop the flow of thoughts

In order to understand how to manage overthinking, you must understand the reason for your concern. Remember that you and your brain - it's not the same thing. Do not take the fleeting emotions for his real solutions. Here are a few ways to deal with academic fixation.

Switch to the sensory observations of

The goal is to slow the stream of consciousness and the brain to really process the thoughts that arise in it, rather than scroll through them endlessly.

One strategy that is quite easy to practice and incorporate into everyday life - is to take five minutes and make a mental record of all your sensory observations - suggests Dr. Davis. - Try to block extraneous thoughts and focus on the sounds around you. This is especially useful when you can not sleep. Rather than speculate about all the things that you are coming or have already been made by focusing on the sound of the fan and passing cars. According to this principle operates "white noise." Download a special application with the sound of ocean waves or forest and go to sleep under it. This will help to disconnect from thoughts and extraneous noise.

Sensory observation could be useful during the day, says neuropsychologist. This is a concrete and effective way to shift your thinking in times of stress. You can focus on something extraneous to calm down.

Admit that you can not control everything

Another important aspect of cycling, according to psychologist and book author Paul Coleman - that lies at the heart of this process. He believes that overthinking is hiding desire to control everything. Continuous scrolling the same thoughts in my head - destructive way to reduce uncertainty and to try to prevent potential threats. Constant thinking about "what if" does not help to foresee all the consequences, and only add stress and cause indecision.

According to Coleman, loop leads to what is called "fatigue solutions":

Overthinker can all day thinking about some problem, re-evaluate it, and then not be able to decide what to order at a diner.

You need to let go of the need to control and accept the fact that you can not control all the factors and outcomes in life. Practically you have to say to yourself: "I accept the uncertainty, even if I do not like it."

Take a step towards solving the problem of

Another way to switch - to do anything. Let it will not solve the problem that you're worried, more importantly, to move away from thinking about it.

If the clock two in the morning, and you can not stop thinking about some exciting event, or about how many cases have to do tomorrow, get up and write down the thoughts that you are having. Make a to-do list, or simply lock the fact that it's in your head, and you are afraid to forget it. Even a simple preparation of an action plan to help you stop thinking about the problem.

Plan your concern

It sounds strange, but Dr. Coleman advises to plan your concern. You can say to yourself, "I'll think about it tomorrow afternoon," to postpone thinking about it and do other things. The next day, resolutely, that stand out in the overthinking 15 minutes and continued to work.

Regular practice of these methods change and realize that you can influence their thoughts much more than it seems.

Do you often get hung up on his thoughts, and that helps you to switch?