For overthinkers those whose minds are full of racing thoughts where your mind NEVER stops coming up with scenarios on what to do – what to say – ways to do it – or ways to say it. When this happens for almost every situation in your life, you create a pathway for racing thoughts to travel.
This creates your mindset! Follow the link to learn the basics about mindset.
A place in your overactive mind, that will not let you rest. Your thought patterns will try to play out all possibilities of dealing with life’s troubles. The things that cause worry and stress. In your mind the replay button is stuck in the on position!
A place inside your head continually speculates on solutions without firm evidence on which to base them. The definition of SPECULATION – the forming of a theory or conjecture without firm evidence. How can you derive a solution if the “blinders” you wear prevents you from seeing outside of the pathway of established thoughts? Thoughts that always brings you to the same solution, a solution of fear!
For those like me, you understand the enormity of this form of mental torment. It is with you every moment of every day… looking at and trying to analyze everything that pops into your head! You may realize that you are overreacting, but you are unable to turn it off. Think of an icy sled run: Sitting at the top of the hill. Once you start there is no way to stop until you crash at the bottom.
Let’s look at what we find in PANIC ATTACKS CALMING THE STORM:
Evaluating how your mindset plays a role in Panic and Anxiety Attacks
EXCERPTS: Sharing a few thoughts
The problem is that, even though you know you are overreacting, the slightly different circumstances of each situation will tend to mask the obvious pattern. For instance, you might have been shoveling snow, and your mind convinces you that you must have overdone it. Even something as simple as a bad case of heartburn can start the ball rolling. Once, when I dropped something heavy on my foot and smashed my big toe, I was absolutely convinced that I was going to get a blood clot.
Remember, a panic attack can start up for no rational reason. Anxiety is often set in motion by worry over something that happened or perceivably could happen. (Speculation) However, people are different, so what comes first? Does the panic attack cause one to overthink and become a hypochondriac about all health issues, or does a person’s personality trait of overthinking make them more susceptible to panic attacks and possibly trigger the initial Level One response? The jury’s out on this one.
( In the book, the author examines his personality traits and those he has counseled. He then explains what he found. )
WHEN PATTERNS OF THINKING FORM RUTS ie. STRONGHOLDS …
When this happens to people like me, we become obsessed with overthinking something that is not going to offer a quick conclusion. Unfortunately, this is where a stronghold begins to emerge. A STRONGHOLD – is a harmful, unwanted pattern of thinking that is the result of overthinking thoughts that now follow the same path. When your mindset encourages continuous thoughts that follow the exact same path, a rut begins to form. Remember the example that I gave you about being in the mountains and following logging trails. This is exactly what happens—you overthink, overanalyze, obsess about your health how you feel, and everything else that can be attributed to a panic attack. These deep ruts just keep getting deeper.
The point I am making is that what I was allowing caused the bad to go to worse. My freedom was going to be found in stopping the destructive behavior that I had plunged into.
Brian found some answers while managing large restaurants.
With managing people, I was effective because of systems that I made sure were in place. The systems left no room for speculation and I now understood that to properly manage my mind, I would have to adopt new methods to obtain the success that I wanted. I had to put similar systems in place to control my susceptibility for overthinking and runaway thoughts.
This is so simplified, but it may give you a picture of what is happening inside even the seemingly well-adjusted person’s mind. The key is: much of this goes on WITHOUT your knowledge! Your thoughts start to travel down the same pathways which have become like ruts in the road. They continually deepen and become wider and more and more difficult to get out of. That is why you always end up with fears, anxiety, excessive worry, depression, health concerns and panic.
We tend to replay negative thoughts. Remember it is known we all have some 20,000 thoughts/day unless you are an overthinker and that cold be quadrupled! If 90% of them are repetitive and 85% of them are negative it seems like the odds are against us that live in this type of Matrix world.
To start to make way for positive thoughts we must first fill in the pathways the negative thoughts race down and then you start to rebuild with thought that that are positive and desired.
An example: The simple act of choosing clothes for a day can be stress-inducing. Trying on many outfits and them combinations of accessories. Your bed is strewn with clothing tossed about and all the while you have an appointment to be at so there is a time constraint. This is not a far stretch for many of you but let’s add a little more drama. While you try on clothes your mind is rehearsing not just the information needed … it starts to play out every conceivable scenario that could take place. I mean hundreds of them in rapidity so much so it muddies the water of clear thinking. I do not mean just questions that pertain to the appointment but your thought takes you back to times or times in your past… It could simply be a time where you took offense. The articles of clothing laying on the bed, the color the texture, may trigger an adrenaline response. The rapid firing of thoughts may do the same thing. Adrenaline prepares you for fight or flight. You notice your pulse increasing your heart racing you may feel jittery or short of breath … there you have it the beginning of a panic or anxiety attack!
What is hard for people to imagine is that this scenario can be played out even if you are just going to spend time with a dear friend. The event itself can have no associated stresses but a stronghold that lies in your mindset takes you away from peace and joy in our life. Sometimes it is a drive in a car, a shopping trip, eating out… The places we used to enjoy become fewer.
For some reason, you have developed ruts in the patterns of thinking, and thoughts now seem to travel along familiar paths. You find it hard to change the way you think. We could use the word obsessive negative thinking but remember much of it goes on without your knowledge! It has become habitual.
Somehow a fear of situations and circumstances has become lodged in your subconscious without you being aware of it.
This is why it is difficult for others to understand what you are going through. This is why hope, joy, and peace of mind seem foreign. We all walk the tightrope of life but your mind has created a faulty safety net and a replay button stuck in the on position!
You need to change the way you think in order to change the way you behave.
FREEDOM FROM OVERTHINKING… The LOGGING TRAIL coming soon
Previous Blog Posts to read:
Fight Back Fight fear 
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