Do you ever wake up and immediately start thinking and processing? Do you feel like you can’t turn your thoughts off? The truth is, the vast majority of us are addicted to thinking. We are addicted in the sense that we don’t feel we can stop.

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“The problem of humanity is deeply rooted in the mind itself. Or rather, our misidentification with mind.” - Eckhart Tolle

It is estimated that the mind thinks between 60,000 – 80,000 thoughts a day. That's an average of 2,500 – 3,300 thoughts per hour! (1)

Here’s where it gets better.. The vast majority(80-90%) of our thoughts are inherently repetitive and negative. In general, negative repetition is toxic. The toxic nature of these thoughts can take a serious toll on your energy, mood, physical, and mental well being.

Why Are we Addicted to Thinking?

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We are addicted to thinking because we identify with it. We associate our identity and sense of self through the content and activity that goes on in our mind. Whether it’s a true, or accurate, depiction of ourselves is up for debate.

If you take our addiction to thought, and throw in some dopamine-driven, short term attention social media into the mix, you are asking for trouble. We get lost in our social media worlds, and try to mold our true selves to be someone we are not.

Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube.. The list goes on and on. There is a direct correlation between these social networks and health, anxiety, community connection, sense of identity, body image, and more. (2)

Even former Facebook Exec’s are coming out and publicly stating how harmful social media really is, take a look:

I’m sure Marky Mark isn’t happy about the bad PR they’ve been getting. Not to mention the fact that Facebook recently stopped accepting Cryptocurrencies(most likely becuase they want their own piece of the Crypto pie,) but I digress.

We are addicted to thinking because we believe we would cease to be, or exist, without thinking. Simply put, we can call this constant, mental image of ourselves, our ego.

And the truth is, we are so much more than our ego. The ego is the equivalent to a false self. To the ego, only past and the future are important. If you are stuck in the past, you are depressed; worried about the future, you are anxious. They fall along a continuum.

How to Rise Above Thinking

The key to liberation is in the present. However, you can’t fully be in the present as long as you are your mind.

Some argue that our thought is the most precious thing that separates us from animals. However, we need to rethink the evolution of thought and consciousness. In its purest form, the purpose of thought was to think about some way in which we can solve Task “X”.

We use the majority of thought for practical purposes, and we have conditioned ourselves to constantly think about how to achieve such purposes.

To rise above thinking, is called enlightenment, in which you don’t fall back to a level below thought. When enlightened(in your present most form), you only use your thinking mind when it is actually needed. This allows us to swing back and forth between no-mind and mind, and we are better able to find creative solutions.

This is the true way to think creatively, thought in and of itself is destructive, repetitive, and mute.

Your call to action is to simply think less - this takes practice and is what the omnipotent “meditation” is actually rooted in. Immerse yourself in the oceanic depth of the here and now. It is in the now that we find our True Selves.. which transcend physical and emotional boundaries.

Take the time to discover your true self. Thanks for reading!