Why do we overanalyse?

Some of us are natural over thinkers - we could win awards in going into every detail to understand the how. why and what about it.

This week I really want to dive into the WHY. What makes us do it, and how can we ease it a little.

It can be a learned behaviour - maybe one of your parents or caregivers were over thinkers and it’s something you have learned. Maybe your parents focused on discussing and thinking about things in great details. Or maybe you simply have stronger intellectual tendencies, meaning your levels of intelligence demand you learn and know more.
Even if neither of these are true, there can be psychological reasons why you overanalyse.

1) You’re feeling anxious.
Over thinking while in a period of anxiousness is based on fear, and has little to no logic. It can be unreasonable, and kick start a lot of feelings of danger.

2) You’re a perfectionist.
If you are a perfectionist by nature, having to make sure every thing is in it’s right order and place in your mind is something you’ll be used to. And that’s when the over thinking comes in.

3) You have low self esteem.
Which means we don’t want to mess up, anything. Which can lead to over analysis of any situation in your mind.

You may have had trauma in your life, which led to over analysing things as a coping mechanism. This is because after trauma trust is hard to find, so everything HAS to be questioned.
Your parents may have been critical, had high expectations of you, or were overly strict with you - all of these things can also lead to over thinking.

In the words of Carol Burnett - “Only I can change my life. No one can do it for me.”

So, how can you change this habit (and it is a habit). Come back next week to find out! I don’t want to give you TOO much to read this week.

Have a good one, L xx