BY FATMA GİZEM TAŞLIÇAY (PSYC/II)
gizem.taslicay@ug.bilkent.edu.tr
People tell me to empty my mind, meditate and take things one at a time, or even take a break. Physically speaking, I can do all that, but how do I stop my mind from wondering – how do I stop, well, thinking? The inside of an overthinker’s mind is like a teenager’s messy room: everything is all over the place at any given time, yet it all seems to work just fine. But if you look below the surface, you’ll see an exhausted person looking for a break. Here are some things I’ve learned over time that seem to let me, a born overthinker, have a break.
Empty your mind and meditate, was it? How might that work for people like me? There’s something called mindfulness; this is when you make yourself consciously aware of daily activities like walking, breathing or thinking. Start with short periods of exercise to develop mindfulness. Take five minutes every day to sit and do nothing; imagine a white piece of paper in your mind and put all your effort into not writing anything there. Frankly, sometimes doing nothing is far more challenging than doing something. Five minutes may seem like a split second in your life, but that second may be what an overthinker needs to just breathe. Do this as often as you need, as long as you need to.
Take things one at a time. This sounds like heaven, but it also seems impossible for an overthinker. When the world seems to be rushing somewhere all the time and not waiting for you, it doesn’t seem sensible to simply stop and take things one by one. It feels like we don’t have the time and can’t afford to be left behind. We want to plan and do everything, but for an overthinker, everything is simply too much. So rather than trying to choose one thing to do, prioritize. Take all the things you think you have to do, prioritize them, and do them in that order. If you can’t finish them today, remind yourself that there’s always a tomorrow.
One thing all of my fellow overthinkers need to remember is that we are overthinkers. Our imagination, thoughts and ideas have no limits whatsoever. Sometimes we won’t be able to stop thinking. At times like that, try to let your mind go, let it run free like a dog who needs to be off-leash every now and then. Balance is everything; allow your mind to run its course. Just don’t forget to set the course yourself, and be sure to include some pit stops.
