“Anxiety Cost - Every time you think about doing something you need to do, you could’ve chosen to do it earlier and consumed less energy” - Chris Williamson
I often sit and ruminate over things I should do, could do and want to do. Sometimes this works in my favour.
In my opinion rumination could be shown as a spiral. When you are looking down on that spiral it just looks one dimensional. But when you look at it from a different angle, it is actually a 3-dimensional shape which can be seen as moving up or down.
As an introvert I often need time to reflect, and I generally visualise and run through iterations of how a situation might play out or what the repercussions of an action I need to take might be. I see this is as a positive form of rumination. With the spiral ascending up to a decision or outcome I feel good about or more comfortable with.
Conversely, a downward trajectory leads to catastrophising and not being able to see outside the negatives of the situation. This can lead to low mood, low energy and withdrawing from situations. I have found myself in these spirals and it takes a lot of effort to get out of them.
Both forms absorb vast amounts of energy and prevent us from taking decisive action. We could be using that energy to move us forward and make incremental steps towards our goals and objectives. Quite often the energy we’ve used ruminating is far greater than the energy required to take the action we are avoiding.
I knew in November 2023 that I wanted to start writing to share what I had learnt through my own journey of optimising my life. I have been thinking about starting for 6 months, the amount of energy and mental time I spent thinking about what I would write and how I would write it, could’ve been utilised better if I had just committed to writing earlier.
All that has happened is that I’ve delayed starting, to no real benefit. If I had started 6 months earlier, who knows how much better my writing might be or the engagement would be.
Breaking out of the spiral can be incredibly difficult and sometimes it’s not always something we can do alone.
There are a couple of things that I find help break me out of a deep rumination spirals:
Exercise - hitting the gym or something just as simple as going for a walk outside after lunch. This helps the brain produce some feel good chemicals that help us feel better.
Breath work - box breathing, counting my breaths in and out up to 10 are both great. This allows me to focus on where I am and clarify in my mind what I can and can’t control.
State changes - something that completely disrupts your train of thought. I like cold plunging for this (see article #4) but other things include getting out of the office/house and being in nature. Another way of being present in the moment and helping the brain release some feel good chemicals.
Journaling - just letting those thoughts flow onto the page. Once you start writing them they become more tangible and you can see the problem and solution more clearly. This helps me be more self aware and articulate my locus of control and influence.
Talk to a friend/loved one - just finding that person you can honestly talk about what you are dealing with internally can make a massive difference. Often saying out loud what is whirling around in your head, makes you realise that it doesn’t make any sense. Try it!
The best way I have found to quickly get out of them, is to take action. Do something that moves me from where I am now, closer to where I want to be.
“Do not wait; the time will never be ‘just right’. Start where you stand, and work with whatever tools you have at your command, and better tools will be found along the way” - Napoleon Hill
Let me know what you do to break those rumination spirals.
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