Bome people say that nightmares are the worst kind of things that can torment a person mentally. But I think overthinking is equally bad. And I speak from my own experience.

The irony is that I still haven’t turned 13, but my mind has started working like a teenager’s, adapting to problems similar to them and has inevitably turned to overthinking about each and everything.

My mind just works like a magnet for all the negative thoughts. At each and every moment of my life, no matter where I am, I just get the feeling that something bad is going to happen.

Overthinking is like a disease. To reduce it, one has to diagnose it first, because you cannot solve a problem unless you diagnose what causes it. I’ve spent five years at my current school. Five years with the same people, but have never once seen someone close to being a true friend. Whenever I would think of someone as my best friend, within few days, she would roam around with someone else, leaving me feel left out.

Of course, I don’t express my feelings openly, but there is an ocean full of emotions and thoughts inside my heart. On top of that, when my mid-term exams were approaching, life became really tough. I didn’t know how to start preparing for it. I had just dragged through the day thinking I’m going to start studying in a while and the entire day went by!

It was at night that one of my friends shared a story that she had written. I was so amazed by it that I decided something; that was the moment where I decided to let go of my worries and write it all down, all that I was going through.

So in my opinion, it is a wrong statement that overthinking is a disease with no cure. It does have a cure, we are just unaware of what it is. If one thinks he cannot control overthinking, then he must read this quote by Amy Morin: “When you find yourself worrying, take a minute to examine the things you have control over.”

Overthinking made my fears grow. It is a wise decision to think about the fears a person has to overcome them. I thought that if I can’t talk to my friends about how their behaviour hurts me, then maybe there are others feeling this way too. So I decided to leave myself vulnerable and ink down the tale of my life — write everything that I felt.

Another crisis that took place during this time was my dreaded choices. And yes, I do call it that because I had firmly set my mind since childhood that I would pursue medicine, but suddenly, I realised I am more into the idea of being a business woman. This revelation left me confused and, with my luck and overthinking issue, I guess, I’ll have to struggle even more than normal people.

But that’s what makes me different. It makes me unique. I’m a fighter and I’m not afraid of working hard. I will find my way around this problem myself, even if it leads to more overthinking!

Published in Dawn, Young World, January 22th, 2022