When trying to figure out how to stop overthinking, it’s natural to focus on your thinking.
And this makes sense.
If ‘over’ thinking is the issue, the problem has to do with thinking, right?
Here’s a different way of thinking about overthinking.
There is usually a feeling involved.
Typically, some version of anxiety, worry, or fear.
The overthinking is the conscious mind’s way of trying to stop feeling bad.
It’s the feeling that feeds the thinking.
Think of this in reverse.
When you feel calm or at ease, what’s the quality of your thinking?
It’s probably less apparent, and not ‘over’ the top.
You may even find yourself ‘under’ thinking.
So one of the ways to stop overthinking is to shift the way you feel.
And to do this involves working with what’s behind the feeling driving the overthinking.