When you’re stuck in a stressful situation and your thoughts aren’t helping—like you’re overthinking, looping, or just frozen—it’s usually a sign your mind has hit a wall. Trying to “think” your way out of it can sometimes just keep the stress cycle going. So the first step is actually to stop trying to think your way out and switch gears completely.

One of the most effective things you can do is shift from your head to your body. That means doing something physical to interrupt the mental loop. Even something simple like walking around, shaking out your hands, stretching, or dancing to a song can reset your nervous system. You’re not trying to distract yourself—you’re grounding yourself back in your body, which pulls you out of that overthinking zone.

Breathing is also key here. Not just deep breathing, but intentional breath work. For example, you can try inhaling slowly to a count of four, holding your breath for four, exhaling for four, and holding again for four—called box breathing. Or just focusing on making your exhale longer than your inhale helps calm your system naturally.

Another thing that helps is writing. It doesn’t have to be journaling in the classic sense—just dumping your thoughts onto a page without trying to fix anything. Get the stress out of your head and onto paper. It creates space inside, and you may start to see things more clearly just by externalizing them.

Also, don’t underestimate the power of reaching out. Talking to someone—even just sending a text like “Hey, I’m feeling overwhelmed and need to vent”—can remind your brain that you’re not alone, which is huge when stress makes everything feel isolating.

Later, when you’re feeling even slightly calmer, you can come back to the situation with a fresh lens. You might ask yourself if the thing you’re worrying about is truly urgent, or just feeling that way. Or you can zoom out and imagine what advice you’d give a friend in your shoes. That shift in perspective sometimes opens up new ways to deal with it.

But in the moment? It’s totally okay to focus less on solving the problem and more on soothing your system. That’s not weakness—it’s regulation. And from there, real clarity can actually show up.