Over-thinkers Anonymous Session 1: I AM AN OVER-THINKER

Welcome, and thanks for coming. We will start the meeting with some introductions.

I am Mish, and I am an over-thinker.

I over-think everything. I am over-thinking this sentence as I’m writing it. I over-think what I say to people, what they say to me, what I see/hear/feel/read/care about/don’t care about and so on and so on forever and ever. I over-think interactions I had with strangers at bus stops in 1995. I over-think what my dog is trying to say when he looks at me and tilts his head. I over-think the tone of voice the barista used 6 weeks ago when she said my coffee was ready. And, needless to say, I also over-think my over-thinking.

Yes it’s a busy world inside this skull.

If you’re also an over-thinker, you have come to the right place. I know your pain, your internally-generated torture, your anxiety and your cognitive imprisonment. I don’t want to cure you of your affliction (like seemingly every other article on over-thinking) because I promise over-thinking can be as wonderful as it is paralysing. I am here to give you tips on how to stay afloat on a deep dark sea of infinite thoughts, and maybe even help you embrace the complicated person that you are.

I only recently realised I’m an over-thinker. People would often say to me ‘you have a busy mind’ or ‘you need a close a few tabs’ but I honestly thought I was well within the normal thoughts-per-minute range. What I know now is that not everyone is constantly reflecting, analysing, ruminating, imagining and wondering as they go about their daily tasks. Believe it or not, some people are actually focussed on the one thing that they are doing, and directing all their thoughts (sometimes not even all their thoughts but JUST THE ONE THOUGHT!!) into that thing. Preposterous I know.

If you’re unsure if you are an actual-for-real over-thinker, head over here and do my quiz.

Not into quizzes (because they leave you with too much to think about)? Then let me tell you this:

If you read the first few bit of this post and thought ‘this chick is crazy-ball bananas’ then it’s unlikely that you fall in the over-thinker category. Please stay and build some understanding and empathy of our human sub-group while enjoying your cognitive minimalism.

If you read the first few paragraphs and felt like ‘oh my god, I am totally seen/represented/vindicated’ and proceeded to have a flood of memories that not only demonstrated your over-thinking but indicated that everyone else knew you were an over-thinker except you, please stay. I love you and your over-zealous neurons. We are going to hang out and have many many many unnecessary, absurd and beautiful thoughts together.

We are nearly at the end of the first session. It’s been easy, right?!

There is only one thing to do before you go - I want you to say this out loud:

My name is ______________ and I am an over-thinker!!

I don’t care who hears you or what they are thinking (see what I’m doing here?), I just want you to say it with pride. Being an over-thinker is not something you need to worry about, it’s not something that is going to kill you (well, we can work on that), and it’s not something to be ashamed of. It is something that makes you who you are, even if you are a total worry-wart dickballon.

You want to say it again? Maybe even a little louder??

MY NAME IS ______________________

AND I AM AN OVER-THINKER!!!!!

End of session. Go be you…

…then come back for Session 2: Over-thinkers and Social Media…