How to Break Free from Overthinking

Do you ever feel like your mind won’t switch off, even when you’re trying to relax?

The endless loops of worry, planning, replaying conversations, and anticipating outcomes… it’s not just you. It’s actually your brain doing exactly what it’s wired to do — but it can be exhausting!

There’s a name for the system behind this internal chatter: the Default Mode Network (DMN). And understanding how it works is the first step to finding peace.

What Is the Default Mode Network?

The Default Mode Network is a group of interconnected brain regions that activate when we’re not focused on a task — essentially when the mind “wanders.The DMN is especially active, research shows, when one engages in introspective activities such as daydreaming, contemplating the past or the future, or thinking about the perspective of another person.

It’s responsible for:

• Self-referential thinking (e.g. “What will they think of me?”)

• Rumination and worry

• Reliving the past and anticipating the future

While the DMN is important for things like memory and identity, overactivation can trap us in cycles of overthinking, anxiety, and disconnection.

Why It’s So Hard to Stop Overthinking

When the DMN is running the show, it’s like having an overzealous narrator in your head — constantly evaluating, predicting, and comparing. It thrives on repetition and familiarity, which is why even negative thought loops can feel weirdly “safe.”

From a neuroscience perspective, this isn’t a character flaw — it’s a default survival pattern. But it’s one we can learn to interrupt.

How to Quiet the DMN (Without Meditating for Hours a Day)

The good news? You don’t need to become a monk to experience relief. You simply need moments of presence that disrupt the default mental chatter.

Here are three intuitive tools I often share with coaching clients:

🌊 1. The Beach Visualisation: A Sensory Reset

Close your eyes and imagine standing on your favourite beach.
Feel the texture of the sand beneath your feet.
Hear the rhythmic sound of the waves.
Notice the breeze on your skin and the distant call of seabirds.
Breathe in the salt air — and exhale, letting go of whatever you’ve been carrying.

This immersive sensory experience interrupts the DMN by engaging the brain’s “here and now” networks.

You can use this for 60 seconds between meetings or anytime you notice your mind spiralling.

💫 2. Moments of Awe

Research shows that experiencing awe can deactivate the DMN and reconnect us to something greater than ourselves.

Try this:

• Watch the clouds move across the sky.

• Look at an old photo and reflect on how far you’ve come.

• Stand under the stars.

• Hold your child’s hand and notice the miracle of connection.

Awe brings you back to presence — and that presence is where freedom lives.

🌀 3. Intuitive Interruptions

Sometimes your body knows before your mind does that you’re caught in a loop.
Try placing a hand on your heart and asking, “What am I really afraid of right now?”
Or, “What part of me needs to feel safe in this moment?”

These gentle questions bypass the thinking mind and invite self-awareness — a key step in loosening the grip of overthinking.

Rewiring Takes Repetition (But It’s Worth It)

Every time you choose presence over pattern — every time you return to your breath, your senses, your inner knowing — you weaken the DMN’s hold and build new pathways.

This is how change happens: not through force, but through returning.

Want to explore this further?

If overthinking is running your life, it’s time to reclaim your inner calm. My coaching blends neuroscience, intuitive practices, and deep self-inquiry to help you quiet the noise and trust your inner wisdom again.

🌀 Book a free Pause. Reflect. Realign. taster session here.

Or join us on Monday mornings for a free 20-minute Mindset Monday reset — your weekly dose of intention, presence, and calm.