Am I Magically Overthinking This?
And a recipe for cucumber fennel salad
Welcome to the Finding Ease newsletter for July! This installment includes some thoughts on magical overthinking, a recipe for cucumber fennel salad, info about online Intuitive Yoga on July 7th, and some recommendations for July.
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Am I Magically Overthinking This?
I just finished Amanda Montell’s delightful new book, The Age of Magical Overthinking: Notes on Modern Irrationality. In it, she explores a variety of cognitive biases that affect our brain’s ability to process all the information that we consume on a daily basis. It’s an easy, fun, and relatable read.
Montell says, “The mind has never been perfectly rational, but rather resource-rational—aimed at reconciling our finite time, limited memory storage, and distinct craving for events to feel meaningful.” (p. 4) This information overload causes us to overthink small things from what toothpaste to buy to what to eat for lunch to more serious things like how to respond to climate change to how to come to grips with the Supreme Court’s latest rulings.
The algorithm certainly doesn’t make this any easier. If you’re on social media, your apps are constantly feeding you more and more things to overthink about. Some of the things we come across on our feeds make us feel good because they affirm our beliefs and values (which is called confirmation bias) or they might cause us to freak out about something that seems incredibly urgent but really isn’t (which is the recency illusion). An example of the recency illusion is when you come across a wellness influencer (who may or may not have any expertise) telling you that all your digestive problems are caused by parasites and you need pay them a bunch of money for their totally safe cleanse BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE!!!
All this information disconnects us from our intuition and the world around us. When it gets to be especially overwhelming, it makes me feel paralyzed to the point where I know I could be doing something more useful with my time and energy, but I can’t figure out where to start.
The magical part comes in to play when we believe that our internal thoughts can affect unrelated events in the outside world. While a positive mindset is great, we can’t simply “manifest” our way out every situation, like poverty or a health crisis.
The Trap of Zero-Sum Bias
I especially related to Montell’s chapter on zero-sum bias, which is falsely believing that someone else’s success means that you are a failure.
I started playing flute when I was 10. I enjoyed it and was pretty good at it. I ended up majoring in music in college and continued playing in my university’s wind ensemble while getting my Master’s in library science. I even applied to grad school for flute performance but was turned down. Soon after that, I stopped playing.
The flute playing world is incredibly competitive. There are so many great flutists and not many job opportunities to go around. From high school onwards I was often filled with self-doubt as I constantly compared myself to my peers to the point where I couldn’t see myself as a successful flutist amongst all the incredible talent around me. When I was wasn’t accepted into grad school, it confirmed my fears that I wasn’t good enough to be a flutist.
I remember emailing with my flute teacher from college after I was rejected from grad school. I told her I felt like all of the practicing and preparation for the audition was a waste. Thankfully, she assured me it was not. While I knew that was true, it’s taken me years to be mentally and emotionally ready to return to playing on my own terms. The zero-sum bias can be a real mind trip.
Believing you’re a failure because someone else is succeeding is deeply rooted in capitalism, scarcity mindset, and individualism which pits us against each other and makes life seem like a pie — the more someone else gets, the less there is for you.
Life is so much more than fighting over pie.
Untangling a Thought Spiral
While I’m better at noticing when the comparison thoughts start to spiral out of control, they still come up sometimes — like when I scroll through someone’s perfectly curated pictures on social media or when I learn that a work acquaintance just landed a really cool job.
So how can we stop a thought spiral in the moment? When it comes to a zero-sum bias situation, Montell shares that she strives to choose connection over competition by reaching out to someone doing awesome work that she admires. This has led to new friendships and opportunities.
Another great strategy is to turn inward and explore how overthinking impacts us on an energetic level. We can do this by closing our eyes, taking a few deep breaths, and noticing where we feel it in our bodies. For me, it’s often in my abdomen — around my 2nd and 3rd chakras. When I’m able to identify where the thought spirals are hanging out, I imagine putting them into a bubble or rose and exploding it.
So, what have you been overthinking lately and how do you manage your own thought spirals? Feel free to share in the comments.
Recipe: Cucumber Fennel Salad
Looking for something cooling, yummy, and easy to make? The original recipe for this Cucumber Fennel Salad came from my previous Ayurvedic practitioner. Over the years I’ve made a couple modifications. I once brought it over to a friend’s house for a cookout and all us (kids included!) devoured it before the burgers were ready.
Salad ingredients:
1 ripe (but not super soft) avocado, cubed
1 large cucumber, peeled, de-seeded, and cubed
1 fennel bulb, cubed
1 cup of chopped fresh basil, mint, cilantro, dill, or a combo (—I like basil and cilantro)
Roasted pistachios for garnish (optional)
Dressing ingredients:
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 tsp ground cumin seed
1 tsp ground coriander seed
Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:
Mix all the salad ingredients into a large bowl.
Combine all the dressing ingredients and mix well.
Mix the dressing into the salad.
Add optional roasted pistachios when serving.
You can also experiment with adding pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, roasted chickpeas, or smoked salmon. Keep any leftovers in the refrigerator and eat within a couple of days. Enjoy!
Online Intuitive Yoga - Sunday July 7th
Join me this Sunday, July 7th at 10am Pacific/1pm Eastern on Zoom for 75-minute Intuitive Yoga class!
This will be an excellent way to reset after the holiday. We’ll combine gentle movements and intuitive tools to connect with our body and spirit. All levels welcome.
My July Recommendations
Listening:
Exposed: Cover-Up at Columbia University podcast - It’s fascinating and infuriating.
Magical Overthinkers podcast by Amanda Montell - The latest one on burnout was very relatable.
Eating:
Cucumber Fennel Salad - recipe above!
Skin care:
NAO Ayurveda - NAO products are beautifully made and reasonably priced. A few of my favorites include the Tulsi Rose Toner, the Ojas Oil Cleanser, and the Pitta Face Serum.
That salad is a winner, Veronica! I've made it several times, and it's in my kitchen notebook/journal. Thank you for reminding me of the recipe!!