To the Overthinkers,

I know how it feels to lose sleep thinking about what happened the day before. It’s difficult having each and every wrong word flooding your mind until you can’t think of anything else. You wonder about how to make it right and you wish you had another chance to try it again.

Now that the semester is about to start, we have lots of new things to overthink. We have new issues to rehash over and over in our heads until we break down. Our minds are filled to the brim with every mistake that has happened since fifth grade and this year will add to the collection of awkward moments and foot-in-the-mouth statements that have gone through our minds for years.

Trust me, I know.

I’ve allowed those scenes to play out in my mind every night. Sometimes it hits me while I’m in the shower or while I’m trying to study at the library. Any time that I’m alone, overthinking crashes into me like the ocean waves.

It’s exhausting.

Not only that, but it’s taking up precious time I could be using for something much better. Instead, I could be studying or playing soccer. There are a ton of things I could do besides suffocating in my own mistakes or the mistakes of others.

As much as I would like to beg to differ, overthinking actually does nothing to help.

It only magnifies insecurities and kills the peace.

Along with that, it will destroy you. At least, it destroys me. It steals my joy and leaves me reluctant to live outside of my comfort zone.

In fact, sometimes the comfort zone goes hand-in-hand with overthinking. They cheer each other on and equally attempt to interrupt spiritual, mental and physical progress.

This year, overthinkers, you and I will have new problems to overanalyze, and bigger shells to retreat into.

We also have the choice to engage with freedom from those awful thoughts.

Let’s reschedule our overthinking and achieve greater things. We can throw out the terrifying thought of failure and disapproval of others while working towards the future. Give your thought-life to God and he will brush out the cobwebs in your head.

We can choose to be over-comers instead of overthinkers this year. The opportunity is staring us in the face. Let’s recognize our capabilities and renew our minds with peace and freedom one thought at a time. I know this is difficult. I have to fight it every day.

We can do this.