"When your brain gets stuck in threat mode, it stays in a place of seeking certainty. Making things more intense, when your mind demands guarantees, it offers up more what-ifs to solve. Over my 30 years as a psychologist, I have learned that the greatest way to tame runaway thought spirals is not to answer the thoughts but to change your relationship with them."
"These five words, 'Maybe, but I can handle it,' quiet down those loud What Ifs for three powerful reasons. First, it's because 'Maybe' tells your brain that you're not going to endlessly argue. You are actually embracing and welcoming uncertainty rather than trying to eliminate it. Second, 'but I can handle it' prompts you to recognize that you are not helpless."
Overthinking manifests as repetitive 'what if' thoughts that logic alone cannot resolve; arguing with anxious thoughts intensifies them. When the brain enters threat mode, it seeks certainty and generates more worries to solve. Over 30 years of psychological practice reveals that managing runaway thought spirals requires changing one's relationship with anxious thoughts rather than answering them. The phrase 'Maybe, but I can handle it' effectively quiets anxious overthinking through three mechanisms: 'Maybe' signals acceptance of uncertainty instead of endless argumentation; 'but I can handle it' recognizes personal capability and resilience; and together they break the reassurance-seeking loop by offering strength instead of certainty.
Read at Psychology Today
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