9 Patterns Of Overthinking That You Must Understand Today

November 16, 2021

9 Patterns Of Overthinking That You Must Understand Today | Divya Toshniwal |

Overthinking- the root of all evil

Overthinking leads to tons of mental health issues. Mental health issues lead you to overthink. Hence this is a vicious cycle that if not broken can lead to severe troubles.

" She was talking to me in a different tone today. probably, she doesn't like me anymore. If she doesn't like me she would break up with me. I would be all alone. I'll never have love in my life."- a classic example of overthinking. Probably she was just having a bad day. But in your mind, one thought led to another and just a normal low energy conversation became the seed for your loneliness and sorrow.

That is how overthinking ruins everything. Nothing actually happens but the mind creates stories that lead us to big problems.

Today I want to help you in identifying 9 patterns of overthinking.

Pattern of Overthinking #1. Worrying about the future:

The most common overthinking pattern identified is thinking about the future. Thinking about the future is not bad and everyone does plan about their future. The problem arises when we start thinking about the worst-case scenarios in our life. Every decision we make is then based on fear and fear is not good for growth.

Pattern of Overthinking #2. Mind Reading :

As stated in the above example, a simple tone of a person (for any reason or even without it ) made you a mind reader, and you assumed they don't like you anymore. It led to so many more assumptions and overthinking on non-existent things.

Pattern of Overthinking #3. Indecisiveness:

Not being able to decide upon what to do. It's a vicious cycle. When you are served with options you think about every aspect of each and that is definitely good. But then not being able to decide upon one leads to re-thinking and then overthinking bringing the loop back to indecisiveness.

Pattern of Overthinking #4. Re-thinking the Past:

What has happened in the past cannot be changed at any cost. Think about it, take the learning and move on. Ruminating over it, again and again, is going to do nothing but occupy your mind and waste your time.

Pattern of Overthinking #5. Background Chatter:

A lot of people keep on saying a lot of things around you. When you pay attention to them more than what is needed you are disturbing your focus on your goals. You think more about what people are saying which at times is absolutely worthless to keep thinking about. So, eliminate the mental chatter and focus on your work.

Pattern of Overthinking #6. Big Picture Thinking:

"When I do this, I'll get this and then I'll do that which will lead to ...........and I'll become famous and rich and then I 'll ..." Sounds familiar? This is the big picture thinking. It's good to imagine the good in the future but not so much so that you lose track of the present.

Pattern of Overthinking #7. Underconfidence and Low Self -esteem:

Not having enough confidence in your abilities and low self-esteem is one of the most dangerous overthinking patterns. Self-doubt can lead you to indecisiveness, negative self-talk and also inaction. 'What if I am not good enough?' is a question that has stopped the growth of many. Beware of this thought pattern.

Pattern of Overthinking #8. Negative Outcomes

Thinking about the negative outcomes of everything is another pattern of overthinking that you need to identify today. Before investment, you think what if the market crashes tomorrow? Before you choose a course of study you imagine what if the demand goes down tomorrow. Buying a new tech you imagine it going obsolete. Thinking about negative outcomes can lead to disturbance in not only your professional but also your personal life.

Pattern of Overthinking #9. Magnifying Glass Thinking

Zooming on one thing that went wrong and rethinking your actions based on one negative outcome is extremely hazardous. Just because something went wrong once doesn't mean it will always be that way. If you keep thinking about what went wrong once you would never be able to move out of your comfort zone again and you wouldn't be able to grow.

So focus on today and stop worrying about the future. Train your brain to identify these 9 patterns of overthinking that are diminishing your abilities and blocking your mind. Once you identify them work towards changing them by controlling your automatic thoughts through your beliefs.