August/September 2025 Aspire Magazine FULL Issue | Page 33

Here’ s a simple three-step practice to start shifting out of the loop:
This is how we begin to shift. Not by solving the story in our head, but by listening to the feelings beneath it.
That’ s where healing lives.
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What to Do Instead

Overthinking is a signal, not a flaw. It often shows up in people who are deeply reflective and highly aware. As a relatively intelligent woman who sincerely believed her ability to think long and hard was a superpower, failing to bend my thoughts to my will felt like a massive failure.
Surely all that thinking was accomplishing something; otherwise, what was the purpose of being so good at it? That only works if you know how to work with it instead of letting it run the show.

Here’ s a simple three-step practice to start shifting out of the loop:

1. Notice when you’ re in your head. Don’ t judge it, just name it.
2. Breathe and reconnect with your body. Place a hand on your chest. Anchor in the here and now.
3. Ask yourself:“ What am I trying not to feel right now?” Then give yourself permission to feel it, even just a little.
This is how we begin to shift. Not by solving the story in our head, but by listening to the feelings beneath it.
WISDOM & SELF-GROWTH
That’ s where healing lives.
ANNE WADE – Anne Wade, M. Ed., is the author of StoryShift and creator of the healing framework by the same name. She shares her insights on unlearning, emotional clarity, and shifting the inner stories that shape our lives at www. AnneWade. com. You can also join her on Facebook. com / annefowlerwade /.

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