The Student Room Group

overthinking

I overthink everything. Every small detail and situation. It’s so draining and tiring because i’m constantly upset as i overthink , thinking the worst will happen. I just wanted to ask if anyone knows how i can stop overthinking so much or how to distract my mind ??
Reply 1
I overthought, too
How old are you?
Maybe you are a careful girl/boy. Are you a student? Do you study well?
Original post by Anonymous
I overthink everything. Every small detail and situation. It’s so draining and tiring because i’m constantly upset as i overthink , thinking the worst will happen. I just wanted to ask if anyone knows how i can stop overthinking so much or how to distract my mind ??


me toooo all the time
but if you are a teenager that's pretty normal🤷
jist try to be more optimistic and you'll see
Same. I agree with the above, it's far less tiring if you take up an optimistic/positive attitude. We tend to be most preoccupied with things we're stressed about or overly self-critical about, so if you're nicer to yourself you should see the overthinking reduce.
what do u overthink abt?
i overthink alot too, but i've noticed its about particular things
Reply 5
Original post by shebk
I overthought, too
How old are you?
Maybe you are a careful girl/boy. Are you a student? Do you study well?


I’m 16, I’m a student , going into year 12 , i used to study very well :smile:
Reply 6
Original post by Legomenon
Same. I agree with the above, it's far less tiring if you take up an optimistic/positive attitude. We tend to be most preoccupied with things we're stressed about or overly self-critical about, so if you're nicer to yourself you should see the overthinking reduce.

that’s what i’ve been doing the past couple of days , i’ve tried to think more positively and i haven’t over thought that much and i’ve eaten better. thank you for your advice :smile:
Reply 7
There are quite a few things you could do to help this. A few small things to try and keep in mind are perspective (e.g. is this actually a big deal? Will I forget about it next week?, etc.) and if there are solutions to troubles try and carry them out. Also, it's important to understand that a lot of the time, overthinking focuses on catastrophic outcomes, which usually don't actually happen. Try and be mindful of where you are currently and what you can do right now.

Finally, be kind to yourself. Most things aren't worth making yourself ill over with stress.
Reply 8
Original post by Pathway
There are quite a few things you could do to help this. A few small things to try and keep in mind are perspective (e.g. is this actually a big deal? Will I forget about it next week?, etc.) and if there are solutions to troubles try and carry them out. Also, it's important to understand that a lot of the time, overthinking focuses on catastrophic outcomes, which usually don't actually happen. Try and be mindful of where you are currently and what you can do right now.

Finally, be kind to yourself. Most things aren't worth making yourself ill over with stress.


thank you for this! i think i’ll have a more positive and optimistic mindset anal as you said , live in the present instead of trying to predict the future. i am ready to change the way i think etc if it means getting better physically and mentally. i didn’t know who to ask about it that’s why i came onto the student room about it :smile:
Reply 9
Original post by Anonymous
thank you for this! i think i’ll have a more positive and optimistic mindset anal as you said , live in the present instead of trying to predict the future. i am ready to change the way i think etc if it means getting better physically and mentally. i didn’t know who to ask about it that’s why i came onto the student room about it :smile:


Well, as I said the things I advised can be quite easily incorporated into your daily life. Journalling about things might help as well. e.g. Writing about an issue and potential solutions, etc. Gratitude journalling is something else that might help you see positives in your daily life.

Depending on how significantly you're impacted by the overthinking you could speak to your GP or alternatively a school counsellor. Or if you have a good relationship with your parent/s then that's an option as well. There's is a lot of information for self help around the internet as well. If you have questions, I'd try helping as well. Lots of options!
Reply 10
Original post by Anonymous
I’m 16, I’m a student , going into year 12 , i used to study very well :smile:


Do your overthinking affect your study?
Original post by Anonymous
that’s what i’ve been doing the past couple of days , i’ve tried to think more positively and i haven’t over thought that much and i’ve eaten better. thank you for your advice :smile:

Good to hear :smile:
Original post by shebk
Do your overthinking affect your study?


sometimes yes it does as my brain is in a sea of thoughts and overthinking that i find it hard to focus on a particular thing
I too am a severe over thinker. Especially during and forever after the pandemic. The catastrophic scenario I predicted was loss of 2 weeks of gap year. Then I lost 4 months of it. From now on I will always predict the worst of everything, because being optimistic has never done me any good
Original post by Laurence010401
I too am a severe over thinker. Especially during and forever after the pandemic. The catastrophic scenario I predicted was loss of 2 weeks of gap year. Then I lost 4 months of it. From now on I will always predict the worst of everything, because being optimistic has never done me any good


Catastrophising is not gonna help you either. Life happens in grey areas for the most part, optimism and pessimism are both flawed. Realism is better. But still, live in the present, not in the past or future.
Original post by Pathway
Catastrophising is not gonna help you either. Life happens in grey areas for the most part, optimism and pessimism are both flawed. Realism is better. But still, live in the present, not in the past or future.


Thinking about the future - I also don’t get why that’s advised against. Should I have waited until mid September before thinking about what uni to go to and start at the following week??
Original post by Laurence010401
Thinking about the future - I also don’t get why that’s advised against. Should I have waited until mid September before thinking about what uni to go to and start at the following week??

Of course not, but you shouldn't be looking so far in the future that you get anxiety about all the things you have to do. Take things in steps. Thinking about next steps whilst you're in year 12/13 (or 14) is a good idea.

I still stand by being mindful of where you currently are and not stressing too much about things you have little to no control over. Catastrophising constantly will only lead to MH issues.

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