Overactive Thoughts: How to Calm Them Like a Pro

Overactive thoughts can kill productivity and stop you from making progress on major projects. You spend all day balancing your mental energy between things that have to get done right away and things that have to get done in the future. When this happens you lose focus on the task at hand, and you get nothing done. This leads to more stress which causes more overactive thoughts.

Are you still with me? Or are you already thinking about what you’re getting for lunch?

Don’t let overactive thoughts control your day. Let’s take a look at some ways you can calm these thoughts.

Redirect Your Overactive Thoughts

It’s hard to slam the breaks on your overactive thoughts once they have momentum. Don’t try to stop these thoughts. Instead, try redirecting them to something more positive.

When you consciously make the decision to stop thinking about something without having other thoughts to replace it, chances are you’ll keep thinking about the same thing. That’s why you want to redirect your overactive thoughts to something more productive.

The neurons in your brain are activated when you think about something. You have to activate other neurons to redirect your overactive thoughts. Trigger these neurons by initiating positive thoughts and allowing productive thoughts to enter your mind.

Write Your Thoughts Down

There’s a reason why the same thoughts keep coming up. Get to the bottom of it by writing down your thoughts.

These thoughts reappear because you have something to figure out. Write down each thought and try to get to the root of the problem. Writing it down will make it easier to analyze because it becomes a concrete thing that exists in reality. Now you can break it down and figure out how to deal with the issue.

You can also write thoughts down so you can go back to them later. Maybe it’s something you want to spend time thinking about. Write it down and go back to it at a later time when you aren’t busy. Your mind will be at ease when you write your thoughts down because now you don’t have to remember it for later.

Take Action

Your overactive thoughts might be holding you back from doing what you truly want. They might be distracting you with fear. Take action towards your goal and leave these thoughts in the dust.

When you take action you find that your overactive thoughts were wrong. They create excuses as to why you can’t accomplish your goal. The only way to know for sure is to take action and see for yourself. Taking the first step is enough to show you that your thoughts are just distractions, and you shouldn’t listen to them.

Exercise

You can calm overactive thoughts by clearing your head. Nothing clears your head like exercise.

The idea of exercise might not appeal to people. But you don’t have to train for the Olympics to ease your mind. Taking a walk in your neighborhood or doing 30 minutes of yoga is enough of an exercise to control overactive thoughts. Exercise lets you focus on one thing – exercising.

Exercise relieves stress, and eliminates stressful thoughts. It increases blood flow to your brain and gets you in the right frame of mind to focus.

Be More Present

Overactive thoughts can come from letting your mind wander. Before you know it you’re focusing on something that has nothing to do with your life. Focus your thoughts by being more present.

Yes, this is easier said than done. The best way to practice being present in the moment is by noticing your surroundings. Which way is the wind blowing? Where does wind come from? What’s the purpose of wind?

These thoughts will teach you how to focus on what’s happening in the moment. If you’re thinking about something that’s happening in real-time, then you’ll have no room in your mind for overactive thoughts.

It can be easy to let our thoughts get the best of us. However, we end up suffering in the long run because we find ourselves at the end of the day feeling exhausted and utterly unproductive. Use these tips to control your racing mind, and share any additional tips in the comments section below!