Sometimes, it’s almost impossible for me to fall asleep unless I’m extremely tired. My mind goes over what seems like a million things, and doesn’t want to stop. Happenings of that day, questions that have plagued me from ever since I could remember, and things that have happened and are going to happen are some of the things that make up these ceaseless thoughts. During these times, I wonder if everyone or anyone else thinks as much as I do. This can’t be normal, I think. Other people must be able to shut their brains off and just ‘be.’
I can’t accept anything that comes my way without turning it over and over in my mind a million times. Even then, I still can’t accept it completely. Because of this, I’ve been called a pessimist, a worrier, and have even been accused of not being as positive as I can be. I’ve been told that I should be able to trust in certain things and people without having to worry about being let down or putting my faith in someone who has intentions that are less than ‘good.’ Why should I just accept everything that ‘is?’ [or what seems to be]
Voltaire (I have no idea who he was) said to ‘judge a man by his questions rather than his answers.’ I think that the things that make up a person’s thoughts, and the things that he questions really determine what kind of person he is; what he believes in and accepts, what he doesn’t believe in, and what he isn’t sure about. I’m pretty sure that it’s nearly impossible for any individual to not question anything, be it out of curiosity or lack of understanding. Questioning things and thinking to the point where we attempt to exhaust every possibility concerning a particular thing are our way of reassuring ourselves, building faith, and accepting and understanding things.
Thinking and questioning are good things. It’s great to have convictions about things and to be able to trust people fully and completely without worrying that they’re going to betray you or let you down at some point. Having those things provides a sense of security, and allows us to relax and not wonder if things aren’t what they seem or if things are going to go wrong. But, when does it become too much? Some of us (like me) tend to hardly ever reach a ‘conclusion’ or make a decision about something even after thinking about it incessantly because we worry that we’re wrong. We worry that we can’t see something for what it truly is, or that we can’t trust someone because, well, people are unpredictable. Or that they’re not genuine, or they have ulterior motives, or they aren’t honest. The list can go on and on ..
Over thinking is something that a lot of us can’t help. It’s just how we are. It’s a way of protecting ourselves and arriving at answers to particular things. However, constantly over thinking about everything can suppress our happiness and cause us to miss out on opportunities because of the doubts and uncertainty that can come from it. While I’d rather always be careful and be completely sure of something before I make a decision about it, I’d also hate to obsess and over think about something and end up being completely wrong about it, and ‘miss out’ in some way. Just like anything else in life, it’s all about finding a balance. That balance involves thinking and questioning things as needed, but knowing when to stop, and being able to make a decision about something based on our instinct and not on never ending thoughts that seem to go around in a circle that has no end. We are, after all, shaped by our thoughts. And who wants to be unsure, unfinished, or undecided?
“We are dying from overthinking. We are slowly killing ourselves by thinking about everything. Think. Think. Think. You can never trust the human mind anyway. It’s a death trap.”
― Anthony Hopkins
perfectenigma 