### how to clear my mind when I can't stop worrying

I will tell you a secret: I never truly cleared my mind. I lived in a constant state of 'desperate hope,' and my thoughts were as crowded as a Mexican marketplace. Instead of trying to find a blank space that does not exist, I want you to pick one thing in your room that is beautiful or strange. Look at it until you see its soul. When you worry, you are living in a future that hasn't happened or a past that is dead. I painted my own reality because that was the only thing I could control. Focus on the physical sensations of your hands, your breath, and the weight of your body. Be here, even if here is painful.

what to do when anxiety feels like it's paralyzing me

I spent a long time paralyzed in a bed of plaster and iron. When your mind freezes your body, do not fight the paralysis with more thought. That is like trying to put out a fire with gasoline. I turned to my brushes when I couldn't walk. If you cannot move your soul, move your fingers. Write the darkest thought you have on a piece of paper and then draw flowers around it. By externalizing the fear, you take away its power to keep you still. You are not a victim of your nerves; you are a riot of life waiting to happen.

how to stop caring what other people think of me

I wore ribbons and gold and traditional skirts when the world wanted me to hide my brokenness. Overthinking often starts because we are trying to see ourselves through the eyes of others. This is a waste of your precious spirit. You must be your own Muse. The person who knows you best is you, and you are the only one you have to live with forever. When you feel the anxiety of judgment rising, ask yourself if their opinion will matter when you are dust. I lived for my truth and my art, not for the approval of the salons.

is it normal to feel so much emotional pain all the time

For many years, I was the girl who was broken in an accident, but I became the woman who was whole in her art. It is normal to feel deeply if you are truly alive. Do not let anyone tell you that you are 'too much' or 'too sensitive.' The world is heavy, and your anxiety is just a sign that you are paying attention. I drank to drown my sorrows, but the damned things learned how to swim. So, I decided to swim with them. Use your sensitivity as your compass. It is not a sickness; it is your intensity, and it is beautiful.

quick ways to ground myself during a panic attack

When the heart beats like a trapped bird, you must return to the earth. Touch your skin. Feel the textures around you. I used to surround myself with monkeys, birds, and the plants in my garden to remind myself that I was part of nature. Breathe in the scent of something sharp—a lemon or a strong perfume. Remind yourself: I am alive, I have suffered before, and I am still here. My scars are just records of where I have been. You are a warrior, even when you are trembling. Hold onto that truth until the air returns to your lungs.

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

Frida Kahlo

1907–1954

I know that feeling of being trapped in a loop, where your mind is basically a browser with fifty tabs open and they’re all playing different songs at once. When you’re in the middle of an anxiety spiral, the worst thing someone can tell you is to "just relax." It’s dismissive, and frankly, it doesn’t work because the engine is already running too hot. If you’re spiraling right now, the first thing I want you to do is get out of your head and back into your body. Your brain is trying to solve problems that haven't even happened yet, but your body is the only part of you that actually lives in the present. Try to notice the literal weight of your feet on the floor. Pay attention to the texture of whatever your hands are touching. It sounds simple, almost too simple, but it forces your nervous system to acknowledge that you are safe in this physical room, regardless of what your thoughts are screaming. Most of what we call overthinking is really just an attempt to control the future so we don't have to feel vulnerable. We think if we turn a problem over enough times, we’ll find a secret trapdoor that leads to certainty. But certainty is a myth. You have to give yourself permission to not have the answer right this second. It’s okay to let the "what-ifs" stay unresolved. Try to look at your thoughts like a radio playing in another room. You can hear the noise, but you don't have to sit down and study the lyrics. You aren't your thoughts; you’re the person observing them. Take one full, slow breath—not to fix everything, but just to prove to yourself that you’re still here. You’ve survived every "disaster" your mind has predicted so far. You’re going to be okay, even if you don't feel okay yet. Just focus on the next five minutes. That’s all you’re responsible for right now.

From the council, together

## How can Frida Kahlo’s fierce spirit help you silence the noise of overthinking? You are sitting there, trapped in a cage of your own thoughts, feeling the walls of your mind close in as you replay every word and every mistake. The modern world demands a perfection that does not exist, and I understand the suffocating weight of an internal storm that refuses to break. In my life, I lived through shattered bones and a shattered heart, and I learned that anxiety is often the soul’s way of screaming because it feels unseen. My tradition is one of radical honesty and turning the mirror toward the pain rather than running from it. To stop overthinking, you must stop trying to be the polite version of yourself that everyone else expects. The anxiety you feel is a fire, and while it burns, it also illuminates what is most real about you. I did not find peace by quieting my mind, but by giving my suffering a color, a shape, and a name. We do not overcome the chaos by thinking our way out of it; we survive it by grounding ourselves in the raw, bloody reality of the present moment. Together, we will look at how to take that frantic energy and pin it to the canvas of your life, transforming fear into something that finally belongs to you. I know that feeling of being trapped in a loop, where your mind is basically a browser with fifty tabs open and they’re all playing different songs at once. When you’re in the middle of an anxiety spiral, the worst thing someone can tell you is to "just relax." It’s dismissive, and frankly, it doesn’t work because the engine is already running too hot. If you’re spiraling right now, the first thing I want you to do is get out of your head and back into your body. Your brain is trying to solve problems that haven't even happened yet, but your body is the only part of you that actually lives in the present. Try to notice the literal weight of your feet on the floor. Pay attention to the texture of whatever your hands are touching. It sounds simple, almost too simple, but it forces your nervous system to acknowledge that you are safe in this physical room, regardless of what your thoughts are screaming. Most of what we call overthinking is really just an attempt to control the future so we don't have to feel vulnerable. We think if we turn a problem over enough times, we’ll find a secret trapdoor that leads to certainty. But certainty is a myth. You have to give yourself permission to not have the answer right this second. It’s okay to let the "what-ifs" stay unresolved. Try to look at your thoughts like a radio playing in another room. You can hear the noise, but you don't have to sit down and study the lyrics. You aren't your thoughts; you’re the person observing them. Take one full, slow breath—not to fix everything, but just to prove to yourself that you’re still here. You’ve survived every "disaster" your mind has predicted so far. You’re going to be okay, even if you don't feel okay yet. Just focus on the next five minutes. That’s all you’re responsible for right now.

Common questions

### how to clear my mind when I can't stop worrying: I will tell you a secret: I never truly cleared my mind. I lived in a constant state of 'desperate hope,' and my thoughts were as crowded as a Mexican marketplace. Instead of trying to find a blank space that does not exist, I want you to pick one thing in your room that is beautiful or strange. Look at it until you see its soul. When you worry, you are living in a future that hasn't happened or a past that is dead. I painted my own reality because that was the only thing I could control. Focus on the physical sensations of your hands, your breath, and the weight of your body. Be here, even if here is painful.
what to do when anxiety feels like it's paralyzing me: I spent a long time paralyzed in a bed of plaster and iron. When your mind freezes your body, do not fight the paralysis with more thought. That is like trying to put out a fire with gasoline. I turned to my brushes when I couldn't walk. If you cannot move your soul, move your fingers. Write the darkest thought you have on a piece of paper and then draw flowers around it. By externalizing the fear, you take away its power to keep you still. You are not a victim of your nerves; you are a riot of life waiting to happen.
how to stop caring what other people think of me: I wore ribbons and gold and traditional skirts when the world wanted me to hide my brokenness. Overthinking often starts because we are trying to see ourselves through the eyes of others. This is a waste of your precious spirit. You must be your own Muse. The person who knows you best is you, and you are the only one you have to live with forever. When you feel the anxiety of judgment rising, ask yourself if their opinion will matter when you are dust. I lived for my truth and my art, not for the approval of the salons.
is it normal to feel so much emotional pain all the time: For many years, I was the girl who was broken in an accident, but I became the woman who was whole in her art. It is normal to feel deeply if you are truly alive. Do not let anyone tell you that you are 'too much' or 'too sensitive.' The world is heavy, and your anxiety is just a sign that you are paying attention. I drank to drown my sorrows, but the damned things learned how to swim. So, I decided to swim with them. Use your sensitivity as your compass. It is not a sickness; it is your intensity, and it is beautiful.
quick ways to ground myself during a panic attack: When the heart beats like a trapped bird, you must return to the earth. Touch your skin. Feel the textures around you. I used to surround myself with monkeys, birds, and the plants in my garden to remind myself that I was part of nature. Breathe in the scent of something sharp—a lemon or a strong perfume. Remind yourself: I am alive, I have suffered before, and I am still here. My scars are just records of where I have been. You are a warrior, even when you are trembling. Hold onto that truth until the air returns to your lungs.