Overthinking - which can be defined as "uncontrollable thoughts in excess" - is something that plagues a lot of people who struggle with depression1, anxiety2 and other mental health issues.
Overthinking is a common trait in people with mental health disorders like anxiety, depression, and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). If you're struggling with a mental health disorder or suspect that you may have one, our Massachusetts treatment center can help.
A study reported in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease has confirmed that women overthink more than men do, due to their brains having more activity.
What Causes Overthinking? While overthinking itself is not a mental illness, it is associated with conditions including depression, anxiety, eating disorders and substance use disorders.
Overthinking is when your thoughts and worries circle in an endless loop. Instead of preparing you for next steps, overthinking usually leads to inaction because it causes you to become overwhelmed by fear. Overthinking can be an early indicator or symptom of depression, anxiety, and other mental health conditions.
Overthinking strikes all of us at some point, but if it goes unchecked and unresolved, overthinking can certainly morph healthy relationships into toxic relationships. If you fall victim to your thoughts and allow them to go too far, they can end up driving a wedge of distrust between you and other people in your life.
Many people with high level of intelligence lean towards over-thinking and keep analyzing everything that occurs in their life, their surroundings and beyond. Too much thinking can be exhausting at times, especially when your thoughts lead you to conclusions which vex and frustrate you.
The roots of overthinking can be traced back to stress and worry. Aside from these primary causes, low self-esteem and insecurity are also common contributors to excessive thinking.
The good news is that you weren't born an overthinker. Overthinking is the result of one fact of human existence: we all have patterns to our behavior. These patterns, good and bad, develop over time based on life experiences. And just as patterns are learned, they can also be unlearned.
No, overthinking isn't a recognized mental health condition, but it can be a symptom of depression or anxiety. Overthinking is commonly associated with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), says Duke. GAD is characterized by the tendency to worry excessively about several things.
Hyper-Rationality is a trauma response and coping strategy. Overthinking, over-analyzing, and over-rationalizing are coping strategies that we learned early on to help us make sense of an unpredictable environment that at some point made us feel unsafe.
In 2 Corinthians 10:5, the apostle Paul writes: “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” It's by taking every one of your thoughts captive that you can fight off overthinking and find peace of mind.
The fear that grounds overthinking is often based in feeling that you aren't good enough—not smart enough or hardworking enough or dedicated enough. Once you've given an effort your best, accept it as such and know that, while success may depend in part on some things you can't control, you've done what you could do.
However, it can also lead to potential misinterpretation of symptoms. Take, for example, ADHD. While most people associate ADHD with hyperactivity and impulsivity, it can also manifest in more subtle ways, such as through intrusive thoughts and overthinking.
Genetic Factors – It is possible to inherit the tendency of overthinking just like other habits. Genetic factors can also predispose a person to excessive thinking, which may show up when the person is faced with difficult situations.
Overthinking changes the structure and connectivity of the brain leading to mood disorders therefore it can lead to mental illnesses such as anxiety, stress, and depression. Moreover, it can decrease your energy to focus and can affect your problem solving and decision making power.
Cortisol is the main villain who creates unhealthy overthinking and is released in the hypothalamus – a region very near to the centre of your brain.
Overthinking can be viewed as both a strength and a weakness; it is, therefore, not a strong answer to give when asked about your weaknesses at interview. In some respects, someone that overthinks can be perceived to be unsure of themselves and their decision-making.
Even though the gifted are no more susceptible to mental illness than anyone else, some gifted children and teens struggle with overthinking, worry, or cautious alertness. Their nervous system seems wired for heightened reactivity. For some, obsessive thinking transitions into anxiety.
Overthinking rarely leads to positive outcomes. Knowing its costs should spur you to do something about it, if you want more success.
Often overthinking can be the result of feeling strong emotions of fear, panic, anger, excessive worry, etc. Identifying and challenging these feelings and thoughts may be an effective place to start. Two of these effective skills are identifying emotions and checking the facts.
Anxiety and Relationship Problems: Overthinking
Negative, anxious thoughts in relationships cause worries about the relationship, what-ifs, worst-case scenarios, and dread. These manifest as jealousy, anger, distrust, and paranoia. Challenges arise when people act on these thoughts.
Overthinkers appear more insecure than they really are. Because of your indecisive nature it may cause others to view you as unsure of yourself. This becomes apparent in working situations because you take too long to make decisions for clients or projects.