We all overthink sometimes. But for a lot of people, overthinking consumes almost every one of their thoughts. It could be something as simple as saying hi to a coworker, texting, or making a phone call. For the overthinkers in this world, such tasks can bring about tons of anxious and embarrassing feelings. How do I know this? Because I'm an overthinker. Here are just 10 of the many things that us overthinkers would like you to know
We scrutinize those small, daily interactions
Whether it's saying "Hi, how are you" to the grocery store clerk or asking someone a question, we will replay that interaction again and again because we feel we didn't "do it right" and must have come off as weird or awkward to the other person.
Texting is just jitter-city for us
I don't even know where to begin with this one. When texting a friend first to make a plan, we tend to think we're bothering them, or when we text first in general, we feel like the other person will be annoyed. If we don't hear back in a few hours, our minds will jump to the worst conclusions. These worries only increase if we're texting a person we have a crush on. Even though we know that these are just negative thoughts, we still will believe them and overthink ourselves silly.
Making phone calls makes us break into a sweat
This largely stems from the fear of awkward pauses and how much we hate the sound of our own voices. Largely though, making phone calls definitely propels us into overthinking overdrive. We will literally scrutinize that conversation for the rest of the day. Though I must say, the more we make phone calls, the easier it gets.
We constantly think about embarrassing things we did in the past and still cringe
Literally events from over a decade ago can still make the hairs on the back of our necks stand up. We feel like we're the same person we were back then, thus blaming all our current issues on the "fact" that we have always done embarrassing things to ourselves. Even recent awkward moments will leave us cringing and lost in our thoughts for days. Our minds will replay the moment a million times and we'll kick ourselves for not doing/saying that one thing differently.
Doing assignments or really any task of importance leaves us self-doubting
Writing an essay? We will read it a million times to make sure it's acceptable. Taking a test? We will review our answers a million times because we doubt ourselves. Doing any assignment/important task? We will check it over in precise detail because we doubt that we did a good job. After handing it in, we will then start thinking about all the things we must have done "wrong."
We will scrutinize every conversation
No matter what we're talking about and with who, we will replay the conversation in our heads, criticizing everything we said that came off as "awkward." We then will worry that person won't want to talk to us again because of just how awkward and bad at communicating we believe we are.
When we vent about our overthinking to you, it actually helps calm us down
Personally, I always feel better talking about the things I'm overthinking. Getting reassurance from those I care about that I am indeed overthinking and honestly don't have to worry definitely, calms me down a ton and helps me to believe that yes, I indeed am overthinking about XYZ.
We tend to bottle up our emotions
All these insecurities of ours stay buried in our minds, likely out of embarrassment and anxiety about letting others see our emotions. Overthinkers tend to feel like they need to hide their feelings out of fear that others will make fun of them or judge them otherwise. Many of these overthinking-related issues could be solved if we did just open up to others often about our worries and anxieties.
Our overthinking habits are actually fronts for our deeper worries
Scared to text that certain someone first? You might actually just be afraid of hurt and rejection. Scared to make a phone call? You may just be insecure about your voice. Anxious about your appearance? You might just have a bit of low self-esteem. Overthinking is done to process our worries and fears. If we take a moment and question to ourselves why we are overthinking, the answer might be clearer than we think.
We overthink in positive ways, too
Yes, overthinking has many negatives to it, but there are many positives as well. We tend to overthink on behalf of others, such as always considering the other person's feelings and needs. We will overthink someone's tone of voice to figure out if they are in need of comforting. We will overthink plans to make sure that everyone invited will have a good time. We will overthink buying gifts because we want to make sure that we get something we know the other person will love. Yes, in some cases, overthinking is a good thing.
Overthinking can be frustrating, debilitating, and make us feel trapped. However, it's nothing to be ashamed of and is very common. Everyone overthinks at times, some people just overthink more than others. There are many ways to combat these intrusive thoughts, and the harder we work at reducing these negative habits, the easier and happier our lives will be.
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