Why am I like this and overthink everything?

This sounds really overwhelming for you and it sounds like it is impacting very much on your day-to-day experience of life. I can see that these anxious thoughts and over-thinking are very powerful, as they are having a physical affect on you, which sounds debilitating. I can see you also experience occasional slumps which can be difficult to pull yourself out of - this sounds like when the anxiety has literally exhausted you, you experience this perhaps, as your mind and body are so worn out? Anxiety is a natural response, that is there to protect us - when we are in danger, we recognize this and adrenaline is released so we can either "fight" the threat or "flight", escape the threat. The problem arises when we are not in any danger yet somehow we are still being triggered to experience anxiety. But there is not always something there, or at least it is not something that we feel we should be unduly concerned about. An example might be, experiencing extreme anxiety about giving a presentation. Whilst a certain amount of adrenaline and anxiety can help with our performance and is useful, excessive anxiety can have the opposite affect - plus the fact we are not really in danger. A normal amount of anxiety about a presentation would be completely manageable and beneficial. An unhealthy amount would cause us to perhaps not be able to do the presentation at all.

So, how do we look at managing anxiety? As a therapist I am trained integratively - this means I use different approaches as appropriate. The approach I usually adopt is the Humanistic stance. This approach is holistic, looking at the whole person as opposed to just singular areas (such as just the anxiety). I believe that everyone is capable of becoming the best possible version of themselves and that we inherently understand what is best for us - however, our experiences in life alongside other people's influences, can cloud our judgement and understanding of what is best for us. This is where counseling comes in! Being listened to by someone who won't judge you, will hold you in positive regard and has empathy with your situation. For many, this can be a unique experience as unfortunately not everyone has someone safe to share their experiences with. With these conditions, it is possible to reflect on situations and also our own role within them. This enables self-awareness and growth. Becoming self-aware enables us to make beneficial changes in our lives and better understand ourselves and what works for us.

For anxiety, as well as looking holistically at the person's situation, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is a really useful tool. CBT looks at how our underlying thoughts (of which we are not always conscious of) informs the way we feel about ourselves and the world around us. This in turn will be displayed in our behaviors. When our thinking patterns are negative, we will feel perhaps fearful or distrustful of things, and this will show as anxiety. By challenging our thinking patterns through CBT exercises, we can look at considering all aspects of the evidence available around a situation, so that thoughts become more logical and realistic.

I hope this has been useful for you!