Thoughts and overthinking are two things that really stress out everyone. And these two things are such that they cannot be eliminated completely from our lives.
They tend to show up when we are our happiest selves, when we are just about to drift off to sleep, or when we are having the best days of our lives, and bam, overthinking hits. It is the most irritating and frustrating thing to happen, but we certainly do not have to live like this.
Overthinking and thoughts tend to come and go and are never still. So if you understand your thoughts and learn how to control your mind, things will become easier and happier, even if the situation says otherwise.
Let’s see how we can control our thoughts and minds.
What are Unwanted Thoughts?
Unwanted thoughts are those that are negative and primarily revolve around your fears, insecurities, past experiences, or future concerns. They make you fall into an endless cycle of anxiety and overthinking that doesn’t seem to end.
The root of these unwanted thoughts can be anything like low self-esteem, a fight with close friends or a partner, or anything that you wanted but didn’t get. Unwanted thoughts start with negative thinking, which becomes automatic and disrupts our equilibrium. These negative thoughts are self-demeaning and make you doubt your existence. However, there are various techniques to be polite to your mind and not let it harm you like it wants to.
Let’s see those powerful mind-control techniques.
How to Control Your Mind: 15 Tips
Learning how to control mind and thoughts is not easy, as it takes conscious effort and focus. However, once you learn how to control your mind, you will understand which thoughts need attention and which need to be filtered out.
Here are 15 tips on how to control your mind with powerful mind control techniques:
1. Meditation
Meditation helps you become aware of thoughts that are not generated by you but rather by your insecurities and fearful side, it enables you to make peace with them so that when they appear, instead of being affected by them, you let them pass like the wind.
2. Positive affirmations
Writing and saying positive affirmations out loud help you see who you really are. Our subconscious mind always listens to us badmouthing ourselves, and when you get into the habit of knowing and loving yourself, your mind does the same.
3. Journaling
Letting out your thoughts on a piece of paper not only helps you feel light but also helps you make a distinction between falsehood and reality. Journaling can be hard when you do not have any interest in writing or letting out your emotions, but once you try it, you will understand who you really are and how your thoughts portray you.
4. Questioning your thoughts
The best way to control your thoughts is by playing with them as they do, which is by questioning them. Your mind often portrays you as a failure, someone who cannot do anything or is not worthy of anything. So to let these thoughts go once and for all, ask them why they think like this, and then when they list down the set of things that you weren’t successful in, you hit them back by saying, “These things do not define me; my trying does, and just because I failed once doesn’t mean I will fail every time.” You will see that they will automatically shut down.
5. Being objective
Oftentimes, when we get too invested in our thoughts, we get emotional and give in to what they are saying. However, if you see your mind and thoughts in the third person and objectively, you will understand them better and more clearly. You will see that if you cannot say demeaning things to a total stranger, how can you say them to yourself?
6. Distracting yourself
While some thoughts are temporary, instead of sitting with them, you can distract yourself by going out, talking to a friend, or cooking. This will make them go away, as a lot of times when you are sitting ideal, your thoughts tend to show things in an exaggerated way. So, it is best to distract them by doing something productive.
7. Doing something you love
Your thoughts can also be controlled if you take the time to do something you love other than your job or studies. This can be as simple as reading a book, drawing, coloring, or making yourself a coffee. It might help you detach from reality and be happy within yourself.
8. Confide in your loved ones
If your thoughts are getting too much to handle, it is best if you share them with people who make you feel safe and comfortable. You do not have to necessarily go through it alone; it is important to vent and talk about it if it makes you feel heavy or burned out.
9. Positive visualization
This technique is done by visualizing the kind of person and future you would like to have for yourself. So for example, if you wish to become a person who is in control of their thoughts, write that on a piece of paper, align all five senses in the present moment, and imagine the person standing in front of you is that person. [Positive visualization](https://nowandme.com/blog/how-to-manifest] does take time, but to make it successful, you really have to believe that a person like that does exist and work hard towards reaching them.
10. Avoid assuming
Overthinking and negative thoughts often lead to assumptions. When your mind throws you off a cliff and into territory that seems negative and uncomfortable, it starts to wander off to places that do not even make logical sense. For example, if your thoughts are telling you that you are a failure, your assumptions will feed you; your parents and close ones all think the same. These assumptions actually feel like the truth, but they are not, which is why it is important to be conscious and mindful of them.
11. Avoid catastrophizing
When your thoughts tend to disrupt your reality, your mind starts to catastrophize things, which means making the situation worse than it actually is. For example, if you get bad marks, your mind goes, “You are good for nothing; your life is completely ruined.” In order to avoid this, take the situation as it is and put in the effort to not let your mind go haywire.
12. Challenging your inner critic
Instead of giving in to what your inner critic is saying, challenge them and interpret whatever they are saying with a positive connotation. If they say you cannot do anything, instead of getting demotivated, take it as a challenge and work on yourself to achieve things for your validation.
13. Create a plan for yourself
When you plan your schedule for the day, you can take 15-30 minutes to make time for your overthinking, so that in that time you can properly let thoughts flow and introspect where they are coming from. With this activity, you won’t let your thoughts hit you anytime and will give them full access for that short duration of time, which after some time can be reduced until they are null.
14. Spend time with yourself
If you take time for yourself in your busy and hefty schedule, you will get to know yourself better and your needs, likes, and dislikes. If you do not spend time with yourself, you will feel isolated and not in control of yourself, your mind, or your body.
15. Seek professional help
If you are not able to take control of your mind and thoughts, you can always seek individual counseling and get to know your thoughts properly. Although you have to make a conscious effort, the expert can assist you in sorting out your negative thoughts and feelings properly. At Now&Me, you can talk to qualified experts who are diverse and have expertise in a number of fields. Moreover, the cost of the therapy is also 1/4th the cost of traditional therapy, through which you can explore and choose a suitable therapist for yourself and your needs.
Why is it Important to Control Your Mind?
It is important to control your mind because if you do not learn to do so, it might get out of hand in the long term and cause you major stress and worry, often leading to depression or anxiety.
When we let our minds wander off to deserted lands, it puts us in a position of stress and unnecessary worry. Overthinking does not just cause mental issues but also gives birth to physical issues like headaches, migraines, nausea, stomach aches, or even high blood pressure.
So in order to avoid causing your body and mind such harm, it is important that you learn to control your mind and not waste your energy on thoughts that are not even yours.
Benefits of Controlling Your Mind
Controlling your thoughts and not being impacted by them has many advantages. Although it does take time to completely become neutral and not let your thoughts affect you, it is important that one learns this and is able to differentiate between their thoughts and the thoughts not produced by them.
The benefits of controlling your mind with powerful mind control techniques are:
1. Better relationships
When you learn how to control mind and not let your thoughts affect you in any shape or form, it has a direct impact on your relationships as well. When you are happy from the inside, it shows in every aspect of your life, especially your relationships.
2. Increased productivity
When you understand that in order to control your mind, you have to let go of any control over your thoughts, they become fleeting opinions that do not matter. You trust yourself and do not let them affect you in any way, because of which there is increased productivity in your work and daily routine.
3. Reduction in stress
When you do not have control over your mind, you are affected by unnecessary thoughts, which cause stress. However, when you know half your thoughts are not even yours, you do not waste your energy thinking about them, which leads to a reduction in stress.
4. Increase in self-awareness
When you introspect and understand yourself through an empathetic lens, your self-awareness gets heightened. When you know your thoughts have a tendency to make you see things in a negative light, you understand how to deal with them in a healthy manner, which is by not interpreting every single thought but letting them come and go as they want. This cycle is an ongoing process and leads to increased self-awareness as you grow up.
5. Better sleep
When you do not get bothered by unnecessary thoughts anymore, you get a sound sleep. You let them run as you slowly drift off to sleep, which improves your sleep cycle.
The Connection between Mind, Body, and Emotions
Our mind, body, and emotions are all interconnected. If one is hindered, it will automatically have an effect on the other. Our mind, body, and emotions make us whole, and in order to live life in a peaceful and harmonious state, all of them have to be balanced.
Think of it this way, if you own a car, the engine, the gasoline, and the inside of the car make it a whole; if one fails, the car is bound to make an accident. The same is true in our case; all of our lives, whether they are personal, professional, or social, are connected, so if we are not doing well in our personal lives, it will show up in other areas of our lives, and vice versa.
Therefore, it is important to keep these three things in check; they won’t ever be totally balanced or perfect, but you can try to maintain an equilibrium that doesn’t harm you in any way.
How Can Now&Me Help You?
Our platform, Now&Me, is a safe place that helps you feel lighter by writing out whatever is weighing you down. It helps you engage with others and makes you look at your thoughts from a logical and solution-oriented perspective. Become a part of the larger community and understand how to control your mind with powerful mind control techniques through online counseling from Now&Me.
When you do not understand how to control your mind or thoughts, sign up on Now&Me and seek professional guidance from our experts. Be a part of a non-judgmental, inclusive, and friendly community. A platform made for you to readily ask for help and let our experts help you get a good mental health experience.
Download the Now&Me app for free and understand your mind with a panel of qualified experts and a loving community.
FAQs
Once you build trust within yourself and do not listen to every single thought your mind produces, you can control your mind to prevent unwanted thoughts. Unwanted thoughts won’t get eliminated from your mind; they will keep coming; however, once you gain confidence and know yourself, the thoughts won’t matter.
If you let your mind run free without putting too much thought and pressure on it, it will easily forget everything and come back to its calm state in no time. Putting too much pressure on your mind and emotions won’t do you any good; let them out so other emotions have space.
Overthinking generally happens when your mind gets stuck on one thought and starts spiraling, or when a certain trigger happens. To curb this, you can either understand the root cause of that thought or trigger, so that you are able to eliminate it completely. However, if that thought is unnecessary, you can always question it or see it from a logical point of view.
You can control your mind from distractions by making a schedule and following it properly. Other than this, you can also make time to entertain your distractions so you don’t keep pushing them sideways.
