Women Who Think Too Much

"This one is a classic. It was written back in 2003, but it’s still relevant today. Nolen-Hoeksema is the top researcher in the field of rumination, and the book outlines all the research that she’s done in an easy-to-digest format. She specializes in thinking about women, and she’s an expert in the study of women and emotion. She’s done award-winning research. This book is evidence-based, with rigorous psychological research informing it, but she also includes real-life stories and gives practical strategies as well. I quote her in my book: she describes rumination as the secret to unhappiness. She leaves you in no doubt about how problematic rumination is. She explains that it is habitual, and what you can do to break free. That’s a really good point to make. In her research, she shows how overthinking is not just an offshoot of problems like anxiety and depression; it’s also a precursor to them. Her research shows how it’s linked to anxiety, depression, and eating disorders, and to physical health problems too – because you’re not just thinking about things in your head, your whole body’s set off in reaction to those thoughts with an anxious response. So you can get stomach ulcers, and it’s linked to heart disease and chronic pain. She also highlights how it amplifies the problem and leaves your mood much lower, trapping you in cycles of thinking. You’re worse at problem-solving. It also leaves you demotivated, so you’re much less likely to take action, even if you do know what to do. In one example she gives, there are two groups: one group has been overthinking, the other one hasn’t. And when they were given a list of things they could do, each group said, ‘Yes, I could do some of these things.’ But when asked whether they are likely to do it, the people who’ve been overthinking say they didn’t think they would. Another thing that’s really interesting about the research is her idea of eight minutes: it takes just eight minutes to shift your focus."