I spend a lot of time thinking whenever something is bothering me, and it didn't hurt me until a few years ago, while I was painting a realistic picture of what life would look like after my university studies. Before then, my thinking habit, which has become excessive, helped me foresee the future. I see problems beforehand and tackle them quickly; it really saved me from trouble. But not anymore, because it now affects my mood, ruins my motivation, and makes me scared, which I don't like. It looks like I moved from just thinking to overthinking, which is unhealthy.
I used to have a clear picture of my life, but a few years ago, it looked blurry due to many things happening to me and in Nigeria, where youths find it difficult to thrive as they have projected while growing up. Lots of obstacles exist, and we're forced to think outside the box, which some people end up misunderstanding. I've tried working on the effects of overthinking on me, but the progress is very slow. I still appreciate being in control of my life, but I've realized that there's more that can be done if I can tackle the main problem, which is overthinking that has forced me to always see the worst when anything comes up, leaving the good part out of my thoughts and vision.
Freeing myself from this problem looks quite easy, but working on the solution can be very challenging. I don't want to stop thinking, but crossing the line between thinking and overthinking feels very convenient since there are no limits to how much the human mind can wander.
But yesterday, I had an experience during my CDS that changed my thoughts. So yesterday, we went to an orphanage with my fellow corpers, and I watched those kids feeling joyful with the activities we had there. I watched them for a while and realized that they lived more in the present, which is a typical mindful practice. They worry less about the future, and that's what's keeping them happy despite being away from their parents. It's a kid's thing generally to live and enjoy the present, but it didn't mean much to me until yesterday.
I knew I'd been trying to worry less about the future, but it's a must I do that now, using the present as a distraction for the future. Instead of overthinking, I can do things I enjoy, like taking a stroll alone, listening to music, or reading books, and so many other things. These activities help me escape getting stuck with overthinking, but finding a way to evaluate my progress is what I need to work on.
The future is very important; it is worth thinking about. But overthinking to the point where today is affected is not a good thing. If we think too much about the future today, it will come eventually, and we will be wondering what we actually did yesterday because the memories we would be thinking about today.