Everyday I have a battle with my thoughts. For as long as I can remember, I have been an overthinker. Whether it's over big things or the small, stupid stuff. It started in my earlier years of school where I was doing so well and receiving all of these outstanding achievement awards. From that point on, I would always ponder how I could be "better" than the time before.

Most overthinkers stem from this version of perfectionism that is put into society.

There are all of these ideas and milestones that society puts in our head of how "perfect" every aspect of our lives should be. We see that perfectionism is very prominent on all forms of social media. From Instagram posts to TikTok lifestyle videos, we see this version of life that isn't ugly. It doesn't show the hardships or battles people are facing everyday. We are simply shown the smiling, well-put together people showing off the luxurious vacations they get to go on or the nice dinners they can afford.

So, once we have adapted this version of what life "looks" like, it kind of molds itself into our minds. As for my overthinkers, it's an all-day everyday kind of thing. My overthinking goes from my work as a hairstylist to my relationships with friends and family. I am constantly overthinking whether I am as good of a stylist as everyone else in the beauty industry. This leads to me undermining my accomplishments at such a young age.

When it's not work-related, I'm overthinking the last text message my friend sent me and whether they meant something deeper than what they said. I overthink my reaction to something and how that might have hurt someone else's feelings. I overthink whether my boyfriend still loves me or if my parents think I'm a disappointment.

They sound abstract and unnecessary, but these thoughts circle my mind as I try to be as perfect as possible.

But the truth is: perfect is not real. It's merely an illusion.

The life experience is supposed to be unique to each individual - not following any guidelines. Many of us fail to acknowledge this and we fall short of the experiences life has to offer us.

For those of us who have a hard time realizing these things, it is so important that others acknowledge just how our minds work and what we're going through. Life is hard enough to go through, so let's not make it any harder on someone else.