How Do We Stop Overthinking? | 🎧 Podcast And Chill

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hello everyone and welcome back to

podcast and chill on the learn English

podcast Channel I'm Leo and I'm Gwen

it's wonderful to see you all again

today we have a topic that touches many

of us in our daily lives that's right

Gwen we're diving into a behavior that's

quite common particularly among the

youth overthinking overthinking is when

we think too much about something it can

make us worry more than we should so why

do we overthink what makes us get stuck

in our thoughts let's unpack these

questions together join us as we explore

why do we think we are overthinking and

try to find ways to calm our busy

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Minds today we're going to talk about

something that many of us struggle with

overthinking that's right Leo

overthinking is when we think too much

about a situation problem or decision

it's like our minds get stuck going over

the same thoughts again and again

exactly Gwen overthinking can be really

harmful because it can lead to stress

worry and even sadness it can also stop

us from making decisions or taking

actions I know what you mean Leo I've

experienced overthinking myself and it

can be really

frustrating sometimes I spend hours

worrying about a small problem that

doesn't really matter in the long run

that's a common experience Gwen

overthinking often involves worrying

about things that we can't change or

Imagining the worst outcomes that are

unlikely to happen but how can we

recognize when we're overthinking it's

important to be able to identify the

signs so that we can take steps to

manage it absolutely Gwen one of the

most common signs of overthinking is

having a constant stream of thoughts

running through your mind yes it's like

your brain won't stop thinking about the

same thing over and over again even when

you try to focus on something else

another sign is feeling worried or

nervous about things that are out of

your control or unlikely to happen

overthinking can also lead to physical

symptoms like headaches muscle tension

or trouble sleeping that's a good point

Leo when we overthink our minds and

bodies can become stressed which can

show up in physical ways overthinking

can also cause us to spend a lot of time

analyzing and reanalyzing every decision

or situation even small ones yes we

might find ourselves going back and

forth trying to consider every possible

outcome or scenario even for relatively

minor

choices now let's discuss what kinds of

things can actually Trigger or cause us

to start overthinking in the first place

one big trigger for overthinking is

stress when we're feeling overwhelmed or

under a lot of pressure it's easy for

our minds to start racing and worrying

about everything that's right stressful

situations whether it's at work school

or in our personal lives can definitely

lead to overthinking another common

trigger is uncertainty or a lack of

control over a situation when we don't

know what's going to happen our minds

can start overthinking all the possible

outcomes I've experienced that before

Gwen even small things like not knowing

the plan for the day can make me worry a

lot low self-esteem or self-doubt can

also contribute to overthinking if we

are not confident we might overthink

because we worry about making mistakes

those are good examples of things that

cause overthinking Gwen by knowing what

makes us overthink we can try to stop it

before it starts so far we have talked

about what overthinking is some signs of

it and what can cause it that's right

Leo now it's important to discuss how

overthinking can negatively impact our

mental health if it becomes a habit or

isn't managed properly I think

overthinking can lead to depression if

we always think negatively and get stuck

in bad thoughts it can make us feel

worse over time constant negative

thoughts from overthinking can make it

harder to feel happy and enjoy life

right that that's why it's so important

to learn ways to manage overthinking

before it affects our mental health and

well-being decision meaning a choice or

judgment you make after thinking about

what is best example I think I've made

the right decision scenario meaning a

description of what could happen in the

future example let me suggest a possible

scenario tension meaning a situation

where people feel unfriendly or

distrustful towards each other which may

cause conflict example family tensions

and conflicts may lead to violence

outcome meaning the result or effect of

an action or event example their

strategy produced the desired outcome

depression meaning a medical condition

where a person feels extremely sad

anxious and hopeless sometimes with

physical symptoms like trouble sleeping

example she suffered from severe

depression after losing her

job why can overthinking be harmful

answer overthinking too much is

unhealthy because it can cause negative

feelings like worry fear and sadness it

can also stop us from making decisions

or doing things this happens because we

get stuck thinking about every

possibility again and again what are the

signs of overthinking answer one big big

sign of overthinking is having the same

thoughts repeat in your mind constantly

it's like your brain can't stop thinking

about the same problem even when you try

to focus on other things another sign is

feeling anxious or worried about things

you can't control or that are very

unlikely to

happen we all know how overthinking can

negatively affect our mental health but

the good news is there are ways to break

free from the overthinking cycle that's

right Gwen with practice and the right

strategies we can train our minds to

stop repeating negative thoughts before

they become too much one helpful

technique is mindfulness meditation this

involves focusing on the present moment

and allowing thoughts to pass without

holding on to them mindfulness is

excellent for managing overthinking Gwen

it helps you become more aware of when

you're overthinking allowing you to

focus on the present absolutely another

effective strategy is to write things

down putting your thoughts on paper can

provide perspective and make them seem

less

overwhelming I like that tip Gwen

writing also helps us recognize

unhelpful thought patterns that might be

causing us to overthink setting time

limits for overthinking can be

beneficial too for example you could

allow yourself 20 minutes to think about

a problem but after that you need to

move on and let it go for the day

otherwise it's easy for our minds to

just spin endlessly if we don't

consciously break that cycle of

repetitive thoughts definitely Leo

talking to others can really help too

sharing your thoughts and getting views

from others can make you feel better and

stop the

overthinking valuable tips Gwen the key

is finding which techniques work best

for you and making them a regular

practice to rewire those overthinking

habits one powerful method we talked

about for breaking the cycle of

overthinking is

mindfulness but what exactly is mindful

and how can it help great question Gwen

mindfulness means being completely

involved with what is happening right

now it involves paying attention to your

thoughts feelings and what you can sense

right now instead of getting lost in the

past or worrying about the future by

practicing mindfulness more we can

notice when we start to overthink and

focus our attention back on the present

moment this stops us from falling into

negative thinking patterns exactly

mindfulness allows us to look at our

thoughts from a distance without judging

them or getting too involved we can just

let the thoughts come and go there are

many mindfulness exercises that can help

reduce overthinking one easy exercise is

focusing on your breath paying attention

to the feeling of breathing to help you

stay in the present focusing on your

breath is a great way to calm a busy

mind when just a few minutes of paying

close attention to your breathing can

help reduce stress and anxiety from

overthinking in addition to mindfulness

another good way to handle overthinking

is to improve your time management

skills right bad time management can

make overthinking worse when we feel

rushed or behind it's easy to start

worrying a lot absolutely but by getting

better at planning organizing tasks and

using our time well we can reduce much

of that worry a simple time management

tip is to use a daily planner or

calendar to organize your activities and

deadlines this helps you see clearly

what you need to do and when

prioritizing tasks is important it stops

us from spending too much time thinking

about small tasks that are not that

important exactly Gwen good time

management helps us feel in control and

organized this reduces the need to

overthink as a way to handle chaos or

uncertainty planning and organizing our

days ahead of time can prevent a lot of

unnecessary worrying

later let's look at some emotion related

words mental health meaning the

condition of someone's mind in terms of

how healthy it is example volunteering

can improve your mental health and help

you live longer meditation meaning the

practice of clearing your mind and

relaxing sometimes for Spiritual reasons

example she found peace through yoga and

meditation repetitive meaning doing or

saying the same thing many times which

can be

boring example travel sickness is caused

by repetitive movements perspective

meaning the way you see something or

think about something example recent

events seem less serious from an

international perspective

prioritize meaning to decide which tasks

are the most important so you can deal

with them first example you should list

your tasks and prioritize them

and that brings us to the end of today's

podcast episode thank you all for

joining us today remember the key to a

fulfilling life is balancing love and

career don't forget to check the free

pdf in the description for more useful

vocabulary goodbye and we look forward

to seeing you in the next episode

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