In this episode, we bring back Nancy Colier, who has been on Overcoming Distractions before. Nancy is a psychotherapist and author of many bestselling books.
We discuss Nancy’s new book “Can't Stop Thinking. How to Let Go of Anxiety and Free Yourself from Obsessive Rumination.”
Many with ADHD have a racing mind, but you do not have to have ADHD to get a ton of value out of this discussion with Nancy. Her book is for anyone who struggles with obsessive thinking.
Nancy discusses why for many of us, negative thoughts can control us. She talks about how fear, lack of confidence, and other outside influences affect our thoughts, sometimes in a negative way.
She discusses how it's not so much the situation but the thoughts around the situation that we obsess with. She talks about how we are addicted to our thoughts, but we do not have to pay attention to our thoughts 24 hours a day.
She also mentions that it’s not always the case where more thoughts such as positive thinking can solve your problems. And she makes it a point to tell listeners that you are not your thoughts.
Many obsess with thinking at all hours of the day and even into the night because we have what she calls a rehearsal of situations, where we feel something negative may happen and we go through all the possible outcomes.
We also discussed the topic of burnout and how relentless thinking about our situation can be a major factor in true burnout. When we get to this point, Nancy points out that our mind is never really off duty.
And as we always do on Overcoming Distractions, Nancy goes through some of the tools in her book to help reduce anxiety and rid ourselves of constant negative and obsessive thinking.
Connect with Nancy Colier here and find all her wonderful books; https://nancycolier.com/