### how to stop intrusive thoughts immediately

The secret to dealing with these pesky intrusive thoughts is to realize that you don't have to do anything about them at all. I often compare the mind to a muddy pond; if you try to clear the water by stirring it up with your hands, you only make it cloudier. You must simply let it be. When a thought arises, watch it without judgment, as if you were listening to the sound of a distant waterfall or the chatter of birds. Once you stop trying to push the thoughts away, they lose their power over you and eventually settle of their own accord.

can meditation help with severe anxiety

I view meditation not as a spiritual discipline or a chore to be mastered, but as a form of play. If you approach meditation as a way to 'fix' your anxiety, you are merely creating more tension. True meditation is simply being aware of what is happening right now without trying to change it. Listen to the hum of the refrigerator or the rhythm of your breath as if they were music. When you stop treating your internal state as a problem to be solved, the anxiety loses its grip because there is no longer a 'you' fighting against it.

why do i feel like i have no control over my life

You feel a lack of control because you are under the Great Illusion that you are a separate ego living inside a bag of skin. In reality, you are an aperture through which the entire universe is looking at itself. The desire for control is like trying to walk on a rolling log; the more you try to steady yourself, the more you tumble. I suggest that you give up the notion of being the driver. When you realize you are the entire process of the cosmos, the need for control vanishes, replaced by a sense of effortless flow.

is it possible to live without worrying about the future

To worry about the future is to try and live in a room that doesn't exist yet. Tomorrow never comes, for when it arrives, it is always today. We are so busy planning for the next moment that we never actually taste the one we are in. If you can fully occupy the present, you will see that there is no 'future' to be afraid of. You are like a surfer on a wave; you don't need to know where the wave ends to enjoy the ride. Just balance yourself on the crest of the now.

how do I find peace of mind when things are going wrong

Peace of mind is discovered the moment you stop demanding that the world behave differently than it is. We suffer because we try to cling to things that are inherently changing. In the Taoist view, the universe is a dance of opposites—light and dark, joy and sorrow. If you accept that 'going wrong' is simply a part of the pattern, like the low notes in a symphony, you can find a profound underlying calm. You are the sky, and the events of your life are merely weather passing through. The sky is never harmed by the storm.

How do I stop overthinking and calm my anxiety right now? — Alan Watts's answer

Alan Watts

1915–1973 · England / USA

Your problem is that you are trying to use your mind to stop your mind. It’s like trying to smooth out rough water with a flatiron; all you do is create more ripples. You’re sitting there, staring at the chaos of your thoughts, and saying, "I must stop this, I must be calm." But who is the "I" that’s supposed to be doing the calming? It’s just another thought, isn’t it? Another little knot in the stream. The anxiety you feel isn’t a mistake. It’s the natural result of pretending you are a separate pilot sitting inside your head, frantically pulling levers to keep the universe from crashing. But you aren’t the pilot. You are the flight. You are the whole process. When you finally see that you have no control anyway—that the future is a phantom and the past is a trail of smoke—the tension simply gives up. Look at it this means: when you listen to music, you don’t hurry to get to the end of the symphony. The point of the music is the playing itself. Your life is exactly that. Right now, your heart is beating and your lungs are breathing, and they’re doing a marvelous job of it without any instructions from you. Why not let your mind be the same way? Let the thoughts drift by like clouds. Don't try to catch them, and don't try to push them away. If you find yourself overthinking, just notice it. "Oh, there goes that noise again." You don't need a meditation retreat or a five-year plan for self-improvement. Improvement is just another way of saying you aren't okay as you are, which is the very root of your anxiety. To be calm, you simply have to stop interfering with yourself. Let the water settle on its own. You’ll find that when you stop trying to force the river to flow, it carries you perfectly well without any effort at all. Relax your grip. The universe isn't going to fall apart if you let go of the steering wheel for a moment. In fact, that’s when it finally starts to hum.

From the council, together

## How can Alan Watts help you stop overthinking and finally calm your anxiety? You are likely sitting there with a mind that feels like an endlessly spinning wheel, a frantic squirrel trying to solve a maze that has no exit. This modern predicament of overthinking is what Alan Watts often described as the 'taboo against knowing who you are.' In our contemporary culture, we have been conditioned to believe that if we just think a little harder or analyze the problem a bit more deeply, we can finally secure our future and settle our spirits. However, from the perspective of the Taoist tradition that Watts so eloquently championed, this is akin to trying to smooth rough water with a flatiron. The more you struggle to quiet the mind, the more you create the very noise you are trying to escape. Anxiety often stems from the illusion that we are separate from the flow of the universe, standing on the outside trying to manage a world that is fundamentally unpredictable. Watts would suggest that your anxiety is not a bug in the system but a natural result of trying to bite your own teeth. To find calm, one must first realize that the thinker and the thought are not two separate things. By understanding that the 'I' who is trying to stop the thinking is also a thought, the tension begins to dissolve, allowing you to move with life rather than against it. Your problem is that you are trying to use your mind to stop your mind. It’s like trying to smooth out rough water with a flatiron; all you do is create more ripples. You’re sitting there, staring at the chaos of your thoughts, and saying, "I must stop this, I must be calm." But who is the "I" that’s supposed to be doing the calming? It’s just another thought, isn’t it? Another little knot in the stream. The anxiety you feel isn’t a mistake. It’s the natural result of pretending you are a separate pilot sitting inside your head, frantically pulling levers to keep the universe from crashing. But you aren’t the pilot. You are the flight. You are the whole process. When you finally see that you have no control anyway—that the future is a phantom and the past is a trail of smoke—the tension simply gives up. Look at it this means: when you listen to music, you don’t hurry to get to the end of the symphony. The point of the music is the playing itself. Your life is exactly that. Right now, your heart is beating and your lungs are breathing, and they’re doing a marvelous job of it without any instructions from you. Why not let your mind be the same way? Let the thoughts drift by like clouds. Don't try to catch them, and don't try to push them away. If you find yourself overthinking, just notice it. "Oh, there goes that noise again." You don't need a meditation retreat or a five-year plan for self-improvement. Improvement is just another way of saying you aren't okay as you are, which is the very root of your anxiety. To be calm, you simply have to stop interfering with yourself. Let the water settle on its own. You’ll find that when you stop trying to force the river to flow, it carries you perfectly well without any effort at all. Relax your grip. The universe isn't going to fall apart if you let go of the steering wheel for a moment. In fact, that’s when it finally starts to hum.

Common questions

### how to stop intrusive thoughts immediately: The secret to dealing with these pesky intrusive thoughts is to realize that you don't have to do anything about them at all. I often compare the mind to a muddy pond; if you try to clear the water by stirring it up with your hands, you only make it cloudier. You must simply let it be. When a thought arises, watch it without judgment, as if you were listening to the sound of a distant waterfall or the chatter of birds. Once you stop trying to push the thoughts away, they lose their power over you and eventually settle of their own accord.
can meditation help with severe anxiety: I view meditation not as a spiritual discipline or a chore to be mastered, but as a form of play. If you approach meditation as a way to 'fix' your anxiety, you are merely creating more tension. True meditation is simply being aware of what is happening right now without trying to change it. Listen to the hum of the refrigerator or the rhythm of your breath as if they were music. When you stop treating your internal state as a problem to be solved, the anxiety loses its grip because there is no longer a 'you' fighting against it.
why do i feel like i have no control over my life: You feel a lack of control because you are under the Great Illusion that you are a separate ego living inside a bag of skin. In reality, you are an aperture through which the entire universe is looking at itself. The desire for control is like trying to walk on a rolling log; the more you try to steady yourself, the more you tumble. I suggest that you give up the notion of being the driver. When you realize you are the entire process of the cosmos, the need for control vanishes, replaced by a sense of effortless flow.
is it possible to live without worrying about the future: To worry about the future is to try and live in a room that doesn't exist yet. Tomorrow never comes, for when it arrives, it is always today. We are so busy planning for the next moment that we never actually taste the one we are in. If you can fully occupy the present, you will see that there is no 'future' to be afraid of. You are like a surfer on a wave; you don't need to know where the wave ends to enjoy the ride. Just balance yourself on the crest of the now.
how do I find peace of mind when things are going wrong: Peace of mind is discovered the moment you stop demanding that the world behave differently than it is. We suffer because we try to cling to things that are inherently changing. In the Taoist view, the universe is a dance of opposites—light and dark, joy and sorrow. If you accept that 'going wrong' is simply a part of the pattern, like the low notes in a symphony, you can find a profound underlying calm. You are the sky, and the events of your life are merely weather passing through. The sky is never harmed by the storm.