How Do I Stop Overthinking Everything?

Overthinking is the quiet thing that runs your whole day without you realizing it. It’s the voice that keeps you up in bed at 11 PM, then again at 1 AM, then at 3 AM, and then maybe you fall asleep. It;s the thing that makes you replay conversations from last week, and the reason it feels like your mind is constantly running three different tabs at once. Guys don’t talk about this.

But I think everybody deals with this. I deal with this. And if you’re reading this, you've probably dealt with this or maybe are currently dealing with this now.

If you’ve ever gotten stuck in a feedback loop, spiraled in silence, created imaginary scenarios in your head that felt all too real, or spent an entire day running on anxiety autopilot, you’re not broken. You’re human. And honestly, you’re exactly who this piece is for.

Why Overthinking Hits So Hard

Overthinking usually kicks in the second you feel out of control. It’s your brain trying to create clarity by imagining every possible outcome, except it ends up overwhelming you instead of helping. Sometimes you’re worried about the past, sometimes the future, sometimes both.

I’ve had mornings where I wake up and my brain is already in fourth gear.

“One thing that was worrying me… something I didn’t and don’t really have the answer to… something I did in the past that I’m still annoyed at myself for… something that’s coming up that I’m nervous about.”

That’s the thing about overthinking. It doesn’t choose one target. It hits all three at once: past, present, future.

And when it floods your head like that, it feels like you’re already behind before the day even starts.

Why Guys Overthink in Silence

Most guys don’t feel comfortable admitting they’re overwhelmed. Or confused. Or anxious. Or stuck in a spiral. We bury it, carry it alone, and hope it passes. But burying isn’t the same as solving. So it builds.

You don’t have to be the guy who falls apart to be the guy who overthinks. You can be confident and still have moments where your brain is louder than your life.

And the truth is:

“Guys constantly have questions, anxieties and worries that they not only don’t know where to find the answers to… but they bury them deep down in fear of being seen as weak.”

This is why overthinking feels lonely. Because no one admits they’re doing it. But we all are.

When Overthinking Turns Into a Spiral

There’s a difference between thinking and spiraling. Thinking is useful. Spiraling is when your thoughts pile on top of each other and suddenly everything feels heavier than it should.

I’ve had days where it genuinely felt like my entire head was working against me.

“It felt like all of those emotions came flooding at me at once and I couldn’t stop it. I couldn’t get it under control and I just couldn’t shake it.”

And when your brain is in that mode, even the things that usually help — walking, working out, listening to music — don’t fully break the cycle.

That’s when you start asking yourself, “Why can’t I get out of this?”
And the answer is: because overthinking isn’t about logic.
It’s about overload.

Step One: Get Everything Out of Your Head

When your mind won’t shut up, the worst place to keep your thoughts is inside your head. You need to give them somewhere else to go.

One of the simplest and most effective things you can do is write it down.

I’ve had days at work where I’m sitting at my desk annoyed at everything, overstimulated, no focus. So I get up, grab a blank sheet of paper, and start listing every single thing in my head.

“Looking at a piece of paper with the tasks that are jumbled in my brain really helps me focus and realize everything that’s swirling around.”

This works because your mind stops trying to hold everything at once. It finally has a pause button. You see the thought instead of letting it spin.

It’s not deep. It’s not complicated. But it works.

Step Two: Physically Interrupt the Spiral

Your brain and body are connected. If your mind is overstimulated, your body feels it. And if you change what your body is doing, your brain often follows.

This is why moving helps.

Walking. Lifting. Running. Dancing in your room like an idiot for two minutes. I know it sounds ridiculous, but I’m telling you — it’s one of the fastest pattern-breakers.

“Sometimes just getting out of your headspace and getting into a workout shifts everything.”

Movement gives you space. It gives you breath. It gives your thoughts somewhere to go instead of down.

Step Three: Stop Fighting the Feeling

One of the biggest mistakes guys make with overthinking is trying to outpower it. You tell yourself to stop. You try to force clarity. You try to get it under control immediately.

That’s not how it works.

Sometimes you have to let the wave hit you so it can pass.

There are moments where overthinking gets so loud that you feel like you’re in the middle of it with no way out.

“I didn’t know how to stop it. I didn’t know where it was coming from. I didn’t know when it would end.”

But what happens after?

“Eventually it faded. Eventually it didn’t feel as heavy. It didn’t stay forever.”

Letting yourself feel anxious isn’t weakness. It’s honesty. It’s what allows the feeling to actually move through you instead of trapping you.

Step Four: Limit the Inputs Making It Worse

Overthinking feeds on noise. Too many tabs. Too many opinions. Too much scrolling. Too much stimulation.

Sometimes the loudest thing in your head is your own phone.

And it’s wild how simple the fix is:

“Flip your phone over. Or put it in another room. Don’t let it sit in your eyesight.”

Your brain cannot calm down when your thumb is ready to open five apps every ten seconds. Silence isn’t just peaceful. It’s necessary.

Step Five: Talk to Someone Who Won’t Fix It But Will Listen

You don’t need a solution when you’re overthinking. You need perspective. You need someone grounding you back into reality.

Not advice.
Not a plan.
Just presence.

Call someone who lets you get it out without making you feel dramatic.

“Even if they weren’t listening… just hearing someone say ‘I hear you’ helps.”

Let someone pull you out of your own head for a second. It’s not weakness. It’s connection.

Step Six: Remember This Isn’t Permanent

The most dangerous lie overthinking tells you is that this feeling is going to last forever. That the worry is real. That the fear is justified. That the spiral means something is wrong.

It doesn’t.

Overthinking feels permanent only because it’s immediate.

But every spiral ends.
Every loud moment quiets.
Every anxious wave fades.

The proof?

You’re still here.
Which means every single time, it eventually passed.

As one of your own lines goes:

“There was room for joy again… it came back in.”

That’s how it works every time. You won’t feel this way forever. Your brain just needs a moment to reset.

You’re Not Broken. You’re Just Human.

Overthinking isn’t a flaw. It’s a signal. It’s your brain trying to protect you, even if it overdoes it. You don’t need to eliminate overthinking. You just need to learn how to break the loop before it controls you.

If you’re in it right now:

You’re okay.
You’re not behind.
You’re not alone.
And you’re not the only one who goes through this.

Your brain isn’t the enemy. It just gets loud sometimes. Let it quiet down. Let the moment pass. You’ll feel like yourself again.