All of the ways your presentation could go wrong swirl in your mind. Yesterday’s tense exchange with your boss plays on a loop. Worry about the threat of layoffs, a recent parenting mishap, and an awkward first date take their assigned seats in your head. Sound familiar? While you might seem to be peacefully eating a bowl of spaghetti, walking into work, or socializing, your brain is buzzing with noise.
All this worrying is asking a direct question in a million microscopic ways: Is everything going to be okay?
“‘Noise in the brain’ is a phrase I hear my patients use to describe a constant stream of thoughts, most often negative, which become overwhelming and are usually unhelpful,” says Dr. Nina Vasan, psychiatrist and founder and executive director of Brainstorm: The Stanford Lab for Mental Health Innovation.
As each thought fights for attention, you’re left to play a game of whack-a-mole. And for anyone who’s played, it’s not an easy road to victory.
Why is there constant noise in my head?
Brain noise can affect anyone, even successful, highly accomplished people. While self-reflection is an important process, brain noise, often referred to as rumination and worry, happen when the thoughts are “repetitive or distressing,” says Sara Kuburic, existential psychotherapist, known as the The Millennial Therapist to her 1.7 million Instagram followers, and author of the new book, It’s On Me. It’s when the brain is biologically hyperstimulated—often to a fault.
“These thoughts often arise from questions we face about our responsibility, freedom, meaning, isolation, and even mortality,” Kuburic says. Phenomena like imposter syndrome, perfectionism, people pleasing, and burnout propel the overactivity and worry that we are not good enough or where we should be. It’s more pervasive for women and people of color who have had to break barriers and glass ceilings in institutions that have not historically uplifted people who look like them.
“It’s hard to quiet the noise because the brain is wired to seek solutions, often trying to ‘fix’ things by overthinking,” Kuburic says.
Those with behavioral and mental health conditions, including anxiety, depression, and ADHD, are also more prone to have overactive brains that scan for problems, prepare, and future-think. “For some, repetitive thoughts can trigger a sense of familiarity that the brain clings to, even if uncomfortable,” Kuburic says.
But we don’t have to live in this type of familiarity. Arianna Huffington, CEO of Thrive Global, often says it’s about time we evict the obnoxious roommate in our heads.
“I have spent many years trying to evict my obnoxious roommate and have now managed to relegate her to only occasional guest appearances in my head,” she wrote in 2016.
Here are five ways to quiet the brain noise no matter where you are:
Ask yourself: Are my thoughts actionable or fear-based?
If you find yourself struggling to stay in the present moment, take time to ask yourself if the thoughts have a clear, actionable step.
“When a thought keeps resurfacing and is tied to something important happening in your life right now, it likely deserves your attention,” says Julie Bjelland, LMFT, psychotherapist and host of The HSP & Neurodivergent Podcast. “For instance, if you keep thinking about a difficult conversation with a friend, it might be a sign that unresolved feelings need to be addressed, or a follow-up conversation is necessary.”
She adds: “If you’re worried about an approaching project deadline and your thoughts are reminding you to prioritize tasks, you can break the project into smaller tasks and take concrete steps.”
A thought that is worth attention leads to emotional relief once reflected upon and addressed with a clear action plan, Bjelland says. These thoughts are usually about events that are currently happening or about to happen.
However, if the thoughts are about an intangible fear or far-fetched possibility and an action is not possible, you can become emotionally stuck. It can be helpful to tell yourself that, in this case, there is nothing to take action on—and draw a clear distinction between something realistic and something rooted in fear. Visualize the thought like a cloud and let it pass you by.
“Worrying about what others think of you or overthinking an event that hasn’t occurred (like, ‘What if no one likes me at the party?’) doesn’t give you an immediate action to take. These thoughts loop without resolution,” Bjelland says.
It’s also helpful to ask yourself if the thought is pushing you in an authentic direction.
“Ask yourself, ‘Is this thought helping me live more fully and meaningfully?’” Kuburic says. “If it’s rooted in avoidance, it’s likely driven by anxiety rather than authentic concern. Consider whether the thought brings you closer to or further from living the life you want to lead.”
Practice mindfulness
Practicing mindfulness is the most effective antidote to mental noise, experts tell Fortune. Try a simple 60-second breathing exercise: inhale for four counts, hold for four counts, and exhale for four counts. A body scan meditation, where you close your eyes and focus on each part of your body while slowly engaging different muscles, is another great mindfulness technique.
“You mentally check in with each part of your body from head to toe, [which] can help bring you out of your mind and into your body, quieting mental chatter,” Kuburic says. Even if mental relief doesn’t happen right away, prioritizing breathing and mindfulness each day will train the brain to regulate the nervous system, just as one would train a muscle at the gym.
Limit stimuli
We live in a world rife with stimuli. The constant stream of information at our fingertips can intensify mental chatter.
“Reduce exposure to information overload, like excessive screen time, social media or stressful contexts. External stimuli often amplify internal noise, so limiting distractions can create more mental space,” Kuburic says. For example, put a daily social media limit on your phone and have zero-tolerance hours where you don’t check notifications.
By having time to sit still and rest without stimuli, thoughts can better pass through naturally as whispers instead of building up as screams and causing distress, Bjelland adds, who lays on her yoga mat in silence outside each day. “True rest means silent stillness, without bringing in any new information—no social media, no to-do lists, no researching,” she says, adding that stillness improved her sleep quality, which strengthens her resilience to stressors and helps her better work through thoughts before they become that obnoxious roommate.
Do a quick reset
If there was no action to take on your swirling thoughts, resetting to the present moment is integral to releasing noise and calming the nervous system. Mel Robbins, motivational speaker known for her TedTalk, How to Stop Screwing Yourself Over, has a five-second rule to reset in times of stress or dread. She counts down from five, gets up, and shifts her attention to something else.
If counting down doesn’t help, try spending 10 to 15 minutes journaling, talking with a friend, walking, or simply observing your surroundings.
“Shift your attention to something in the present that brings you joy—a beautiful tree, a bird, or the adorable face of your pet,” Bjelland says.
Accept uncertainty with self-compassion
Huffington says to address the voice in our head as we would a friend. “Even our worst enemies don’t talk about us the way we talk to ourselves,” she previously wrote. “I wish someone would invent a tape recorder that we could attach to our brains to record everything we tell ourselves. We would realize how important it is to stop this negative self- talk.”
Instead of being hard on your for your thoughts, approach them with acceptance and self-compassion, Bjelland advises.
First, acknowledge the thoughts.
“I’m feeling anxious about this, and that’s understandable,” Bjelland suggests saying to yourself.
Then, challenge the thought with a reality check. “What am I really afraid of? Is this fear based on facts or a ‘what-if’ scenario?” she asks. “When we are harsh with ourselves, it tends to fuel the cycle of mental noise, making it harder to let go of these thoughts or stop worrying. However, by practicing self-compassion—speaking to ourselves kindly, normalizing our emotions, and acknowledging that it’s okay to struggle—we can soften the impact of overwhelming thoughts.”
While the objective in whack-a-mole is to successfully force all of the moles back into their holes, that’s not the goal when it comes to ruminating thoughts, Kuburic says. It’s impossible to shut off all unwanted thoughts because uncertainty will stay wherever we go.
“Acknowledge the unpredictability of life and the fact that we can’t control everything,” she says. “When you feel overwhelmed by thoughts, gently remind yourself that uncertainty is part of life and that freedom lies in how you choose to respond to it … Silence, in an existential sense, may not be the goal.”
While these interventions are a first-step, persistent harmful and dangerous thoughts may require a professional to step in. The mental health hotline can be reached by dialing 988. Other resources for immediate help are here.
