Best Books To Help and Heal Overthinking
By Charlene Lazewski, Untangled | Self Development Book Club
Sometimes the brain will go on a hamster wheel of thoughts, and it can become quite overwhelming. Here are 5 books that truly help with this pesky habit....
If you tend to overthink many situations and moments in your life, you’re not alone. A large percentage of the population consider themselves over thinkers. They over analyze consistently, which can lead to unnecessary stress and anxiety. And stress and anxiety can lead to serious health problems.
It goes without saying, if you’re an over thinker, it’s in your best interest to put it in check and heal from it, FOR GOOD.
Here are some books that have significantly helped friends and colleagues of mine with their overthinking. Many have even now been able do away with overthinking in totality!
UnFuck Your Brain, by Faith G. Harper
Our brains do their best to help us out, but every so often they can be real assholes―having melt downs, getting addicted to things, or shutting down completely at the worst possible moments. Your brain knows it’s not good to do these things, but it can’t help it sometimes―especially if it’s obsessing about trauma it can’t overcome. That’s where this life-changing book comes in.
With humor, patience, science, and lots of good-ole swearing, Dr. Faith explains what’s going on in your skull, and talks you through the process of retraining your brain to respond appropriately to the non-emergencies of everyday life, and to deal effectively with old, or newly acquired, traumas (particularly post-traumatic stress disorder).
Get Out Of My Head, by Meredith Arthur
Are you an overthinker? You're not alone! In a world full of deadlines, and technology, and constant stress, anxiety sometimes feels inevitable. But what if you learned to ride the wave of anxiety, instead of getting lost in it? Get Out of My Head is here to help, providing guidance and inspiration for anxious overthinkers of all sorts. This compact, illustrated book offers soothing techniques for understanding anxiety and moving through the traps of overthinking. Aimed at a modern audience looking for support and community, this beautifully illustrated guide offers a joyful, manageable way to deal with anxiety and quiet stressful thoughts through easy exercises, bite-sized takeaways, and calming visuals.
Chatter, by Ethan Kross
In Chatter, acclaimed psychologist Ethan Kross explores the silent conversations we have with ourselves. Interweaving groundbreaking behavioral and brain research from his own lab with real-world case studies—from a pitcher who forgets how to pitch, to a Harvard undergrad negotiating her double life as a spy—Kross explains how these conversations shape our lives, work, and relationships. He warns that giving in to negative and disorienting self-talk—what he calls "chatter"—can tank our health, sink our moods, strain our social connections, and cause us to fold under pressure.
Stop Over Thinking, by Nick Trenton
Stop Overthinking is a book that understands where you've been through, the exhausting situation you've put yourself into, and how you lose your mind in the trap of anxiety and stress. Acclaimed author Nick Trenton will walk you through the obstacles with detailed and proven techniques to help you rewire your brain, control your thoughts, and change your mental habits.
What's more, the book will provide you scientific approaches to completely change the way you think and feel about yourself by ending the vicious thought patterns.
The Worry Trick, by David Carbonell
Anxiety is a powerful force. It makes us question ourselves and our decisions, causes us to worry about the future, and fills our days with dread and emotional turbulence. Based in acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), this book is designed to help you break the cycle of worry.
Worry convinces us there's danger, and then tricks us into getting into fight, flight, or freeze mode—even when there is no danger. The techniques in this book, rather than encouraging you to avoid or try to resist anxiety, shows you how to see the trick that underlies your anxious thoughts, and how avoidance can backfire and make anxiety worse.