Peace of mind… Sometimes it feels like an impossible feeling to achieve, especially when our brains never seem to stop. Overthinking can be exhausting, and the negative thought cycle can lead to other issues such as anxiety, low mood and insomnia.
You may feel overwhelmed at the moment, but we can work together to calm that constant negative overthinking. Solution-focused hypnotherapy helps you concentrate on a positive future – in this case, one where overthinking doesn’t control your thoughts. In this article, we look at how solution-focused hypnotherapy can help you feel calmer.
What is overthinking?
When does simply “thinking” become “overthinking”? As the term suggests, overthinking is thinking too much. It’s when we go over the same thought again and again, analysing situations or events until all we manage to blow them out of all proportion.
But surely some level of worry is natural? Yes it is – everyone has worries. However, worrying is the way we find solutions to issues and move our lives forwards. Overthinking lacks that active, problem-solving element, stressing us to the point where we’re incapable of acting or making clear decisions. It also often involves ruminating over past events, often building these up into incredibly negative future scenarios.
The overthinking (or “ruminating”) brain isn’t calm. The constant stress can lead to anxiety, which in turn feeds into the negative thinking cycle. Overthinking and anxiety aren’t the same thing, but they’re certainly related.
Why do we overthink?
Overthinking, like anxiety, comes from our primitive preservation instincts. Our brains developed to become hyper-vigilant so we could protect ourselves and our tribes from threats, such as (our old friend and regular metaphor) the sabre-toothed tiger.
While our primitive survival instincts are valid in some situations, we’re often unable to switch off from our fight-or-flight instinct when it’s actually not needed. Overthinking comes from this hyper-vigilant state, which makes us see things from the worst possible perspective.
The intellectual side of our brains will try to intervene when we overthink a minor issue; unfortunately, the primitive brain shouts louder. While intellectually we know that we won’t lose our job because we were five minutes late for the team meeting, we persist in believing that we’ll be carpeted in the morning. Rather than some honest self-reflection (“I must leave earlier next time – that was unprofessional of me so it won’t happen again”), our thoughts start to spiral.
Can overthinking affect mental health?
Overthinking and our mental health have a bidirectional relationship: overthinking can be both a symptom and a cause of mental health issues. These can include:
Depression and low mood. Ruminating on (real and imagined) slights, errors or negative experiences naturally affects our moods. People who have depression are also more likely to self-reflect negatively.
Anxiety. This can be why we overthink in the first place: an attempt to forecast all possible future scenarios to calm an anxious brain. Unfortunately, because overthinking is seldom rational, it has the opposite effect.
Low self-esteem. Overthinking can affect self-confidence and how we feel about ourselves. Constantly replaying errors can lead to feelings of inadequacy, incompetence and even imposter syndrome.
Tiredness and stress. Replaying events and overthinking worst-case scenarios keeps us awake at night, anxious, mortified and second-guessing outcomes – creating a vicious circle of tiredness and stress.
Post-traumatic stress disorder. People who have experienced trauma will understandably replay it. They might also start to negatively future forecast in an attempt to prevent the trauma happening again.
How can hypnotherapy help?
Solution-focused hypnotherapy, with its emphasis on the present and the future rather than the past, is an effective way of managing overthinking.
If you find yourself constantly dwelling on worries rather than intellectualising them, we need to look at how we get your thoughts back on a calm and rational track. The hypnotherapy contrived trance state enables both sides of our brain to work together, and this is when we can replace those negative thoughts with positive feelings and actions.
Hypnosis breaks the cycle of anxiety and overthinking through relaxation and visualisation techniques. The result? The regained ability to be rational and realistic about events, a reduction in anxiety about the future, and a calmer mind.
Hypnotherapy for overthinking with Great Minds Clinic
If you feel that you’re struggling with overthinking and would like to have a calmer, less anxious mind, please get in touch with me for a confidential chat. We’ll work together to get things back in perspective.
