The Noise Within

Hold on a second.

Take in your surroundings. Feel the tips of your toes.  Notice who you are with.

Wait... that was your mind.

Have you ever waged war against your thoughts? Struggling to stay focused on the task at hand? Tossing and turning on the bed without falling asleep, and wondering if you’re Batman?

Probably, every day. Or at least, often.

Our restless minds often look for trouble even in the peace. They tend to check what could go wrong and try to keep us safe. That instinct is rooted in how we evolved to survive.

But don’t worry.

We’re going to break the pattern. Awaken your mind and hang on to every word.

What if someone nags you the way intrusive thoughts do? You’d shush them or walk away, right? But you can’t shush your mind, though. Reason...? Let me get this.

Try not to think about a white bear.

Be honest, the moment you force your mind not to think about the bear your mind would start checking whether you’re thinking about it or not.

 As a result, trying to avoid the thought makes you think about it, this phenomenon known as the white bear effect. I know you’re already overwhelmed by theories and effects. So, let’s not keep it theoretical.

If you notice the thoughts arising in your mind, many of them have an emotional basis. They can be related to a situation where you’re high or low or a strong craving or a strong belief.

In plain English, don’t give emotional space to distracting, unwanted and intrusive things. When you find a thought worth acting on, you can engage with it, if not, no guilt, no judgement, no reaction. Just move on.

Social Media Helps, Social Media Hurts.

As always, social media plays a role in every modern problem. Mainly, doom scrolling, and endless reels steal time and leave you mentally exhausted.

The algorithm serves you curry, then banana, then tea, then… a chaotic vomit of everything imaginable.

Basically, we tend to be influenced by the visuals and sounds around us. Consuming a variety of content with a mix of emotions makes your mind switch between different emotions, topics, and sounds. Scrolling through negative contents feed your mind badly. Ultimately, your mind feels like...

‘Yep, I’m doomed’

Eventually, you may feel exhausted, anxious, or overwhelmed and your thoughts may become unsettled, making it harder for you to focus.

On the other hand, we post before experiencing and often look for thumbs up from others. We start comparing ourselves to the posts, feel like everyone else is doing better, which may lead to FOMO (Fear of Missing Out).

 Behind the Smile, There May Be a Silent Struggle.

You know what? Nearly 1 in 7 people live with a mental illness at any given time, based on the data. The worst part is a lot of us don’t even realize we have these condition, we just think our brains are being quirky and making life unnecessarily difficult for fun.

Still, it’s not easy to function in everyday life like others do when you’re dealing with mental health conditions like OCD, ADHD, GAD and specific phobias, and so on.

Therefore, some may need professional help rather than managing it alone, especially those who can’t break the mental loop or trap on their own.

People affected by certain mental disorders may find it difficult to focus their minds. Some may even affect your behavior and perception.

However, there are so many living proofs that show us these can be manageable with the right support and treatment.

What helps?

You need to be aware of your thoughts and emotions.
The moment you become mindful and present; you can observe your mind from a distance.

So, you can notice what you're thinking and avoid getting pulled into it. This involves metacognition.

Plus, emotions like anger, envy, anxiety, fear, and holding a grudge spark negative thinking. Simply, thoughts and emotions may feed each other.

Reducing social media usage, specifically watching short video clips and mindless scrolling. However, this is something easier said than done.

A few final words with you. We always focus on the external factors that hit you. We always blame systems and others.

There is a saying, ‘when you change yourself, the world will change itself’, meaning, if everyone works on correcting themselves, the world will consequently change. To start the change in your inner self, you need to have a proper understanding of how you and your mind function.

I have shared something which I understand regarding the psychological nature. Most importantly, something I shared above may come from my personal experience and it may not work for some people.

The greatest things happen when the noise within becomes the voice that guides you.