414: Do you overthink?

What’s going to happen? Did they hear me wrong? Was I good enough?
And the list goes on!!! All these questions used to pop in my head all day (and night) long like popcorn in the microwave.
I got to the point where I was spending more time making movies in my head than actually doing work or living life.
Then one day I started wondering if my overthinking habit was actually a disease and that turned out to be a slippery slope.
I’d attach a bunch of labels to my compulsive string of thoughts. I have OCD. Oh no wait, I just have GAD. Or maybe It’s insomnia mixed with ADD.
I am going to spare you the list of doctors and meds I tried (to no avail) and I’ll get straight to the end of this frantic race to nowhere.
I meditated. Yes, I meditated a lot. I first meditated for a few hours in a row on a flight from Europe to YYZ so that I could distract myself from the fear of very very unlikely things happening to me.
It worked so well that as soon as I landed I decided to start a 20-minute meditation routine every morning.
I love meditating because it reminds me that I am in control of my mind, no matter what my thoughts make me think.
I love meditating because it reminds me that my thoughts are just thoughts, and they are not accurate representations of the world around me.
Is it easy to meditate? Not really. Actually, It’s kinda boring and frustrating at the beginning. But hey, I learned how to ride a bike when I was a kid. I scraped my knees and elbows, but if I had the resilience to get back up and try again when I was 3 years old, I am sure you can fall down and get back up with your meditation practice a few times.
I have been doing it for 5 years and I rarely miss a day. In fact, now, even a 10-minute deep meditation session is enough for me to put me back on the driver’s seat.
Do you meditate? And If you do, how often and for how long?