We all go through stages of questioning our life choices. We question whether we are in the right job, relationship, and geographical location. We ponder whether we are on the right path in life. In a world full of choice, we can become dizzy with doubt and wonder if we need to make drastic changes.
Sure, it’s healthy to self-reflect and question some things, but we will feel rudderless and temporary when this becomes a regular pattern. Questioning everything prevents us from leaning into acceptance. Acceptance is a significant aspect of finding happiness.
This article will outline what it means to question everything. We will suggest five tips to help you overcome the habit of questioning everything.
Contents
What does it mean to question everything?
When we are in the habit of questioning everything in life, it’s like walking around with a gremlin sitting on our shoulders. This gremlin narrates our actions and thoughts, sewing seeds of doubt into our daily lives. “Are you sure you want to do that?” asks the gremlin, and our anxiety levels escalate.
When we question everything, our brain goes into overdrive. Ultimately, we start to think too much. It can be extremely difficult to quieten an overactive brain, and it can feel like there’s an internal dialogue going on in our minds.
Remember, as we have discussed previously, we are not our thoughts.
From my personal experience, the periods I have felt most anxious and questioning my everyday choices and larger life choices are when I’ve felt most trapped.
The unsettling nature of unquestioning everything
As we have acknowledged, questioning everything is similar to overthinking.
This research review looks at studies of participants who “think too much.”
It’s worth noting that thinking too much is linked with feelings of distress and ruminative thoughts. Which, in turn, escalates anxiety.
There are overlaps between those who think too much and those with anxiety, depression, and PTSD.
Is it a case of the dog wagging the tail or the tail wagging the dog? In other words, do we induce a negative psychology when habitually questioning everything? Or do we question everything because we already experience a negative psychology?
All cases may be different. Either way, it’s worth irradicating the questioning thoughts for our well-being.
💡 By the way: Do you find it hard to be happy and in control of your life? It may not be your fault. To help you feel better, we’ve condensed the information of 100’s of articles into a 10-step mental health cheat sheet to help you be more in control. 👇
Don’t Miss Out On Happiness
Find happiness with this 10-step mental health cheat sheet.
5 ways to not question everything
I encourage you to think through big life decisions, but there’s a difference between making considered decisions and questioning everything you do.
If you are ready to step out of your limbo state, here are our five tips to help you stop questioning everything today.
1. Practice yoga and meditation
Calming down the mind is the aim of the game here, and both yoga and meditation are scientifically proven to do just that. When we calm down the mind, we embrace inner stillness. Imagine the serenity of a calm ocean versus the unease of choppy and churning waves.
Alternatively, you could find stillness through other channels, such as:
- Coloring in.
- Nature walks.
- Reading.
- Exercise.
You may have to experiment with different things to find what brings you the most calm.
Recently, I’ve been embracing sea swimming, while the Irish water isn’t too cold. There’s something deeply centering and calming about basking in the open water.
2. Work with a therapist
Please don’t feel alone with these questioning and intrusive thoughts. If you struggle to eradicate them, maybe it’s time to speak with a therapist.
I’ve been working with a therapist for a few years now. It’s not necessarily a simple or easy process; there is no quick fix. But I already feel like a different person from the person I was before I started therapy.
I can feel an increase in my confidence and self-esteem, and I definitely experience fewer intrusive thoughts.
If you don’t know how to find a good therapist, a great place to start is via the Psychology Today website.
3. Embrace breathing exercises
Constant questioning thoughts have a knock-on effect on our physiology—specifically, our heart rate and blood pressure increase, which can leave us feeling jittery and anxious.
When we practice breathing exercises, rhythmic inhalations, and exhalations activate our parasympathetic nervous system and calm our body. Breathing exercises reassure our body that there is nothing to worry about and we don’t need to prepare to fight or flee.
You could start off with the popular box breathing exercise.
- Inhale for 4 seconds.
- Hold your breath for 4 seconds
- Exhale for 4 seconds.
Repeat this cycle for 10 rounds and see how you feel afterward.
4. Acknowledge your thoughts
Sometimes, the more we try to stop or ignore our thoughts, the louder and more intrusive they become.
Can you learn to welcome your thoughts and discard them as quickly as they come? See your thoughts, recognize that you are not your thoughts, and move them out of your mind as quickly as they arrive. Don’t let them control you; you control them.
Listening to our thoughts can be as distracting as going down an internet rabbit hole. We can find ourselves in very dark places if our thoughts dictate our actions.
My thoughts have often tried to sabotage me. They tell me all the reasons I shouldn’t be in my relationship. I find it particularly helpful to laugh at them and sometimes even tell my husband what my brain has tried to conjure up to come between us. This method means I keep control, and my thoughts don’t control me.
I don’t know about you, but I can find myself in a place of serenity only for a bit of mindless scrolling to jerk me out of my peaceful place and wake up the questioning gremlins within.
Doom scrolling can make me question everything, especially since I am already seen as a non-conformist.
Being on the periphery of other people’s highlight wheels can feel isolating and exclusionary if I allow myself to compare and get sucked into the trap of betraying my own yearnings. It is very easy to forget our own hard-fought path in favor of a path that the masses are treading—safety in numbers.
Hold the line: if you experience social media anxiety or poor psychology from scrolling, please be kind to yourself and remove social media from your mobile device or avoid it altogether.
💡 By the way: If you want to start feeling better and more productive, I’ve condensed the information of 100’s of our articles into a 10-step mental health cheat sheet here. 👇
This Cheat Sheet Will Help You Be Happier and More Productive
Thrive under stress and crush your goals with these 10 unique tips for your mental health.
Wrapping up
The reality is you will question some things in your life, which is a good thing. It’s when you start to question everything that it can become destabilizing.
Use our five tips to stop questioning everything in your life and allow yourself to embrace a place of confidence and acceptance.
- Practice yoga and meditation
- Work with a therapist
- Embrace breathing exercises.
- Acknowledge your thoughts.
- Switch off or limit your social media.
Is there anything you do to quell the questioning mind? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below!
