Coaching practices for I Do All This Work on My Thinking but it Stays Totally Abstract I Can't Tell Whether Any of it Actually Moved the Feeling or Whether I Just Spun My Wheels So I Have No Idea If This is Even Working for Me
Describe almost anything you are working through and IX Coach finds the practices whose real-world fit is closest. For I Do All This Work on My Thinking but it Stays Totally Abstract I Can't Tell Whether Any of it Actually Moved the Feeling or Whether I Just Spun My Wheels So I Have No Idea If This is Even Working for Me, these are the strongest matches in the current practice library.
Does this sound like the set of challenges you might be facing?
- I do all this work on my thinking but it stays totally abstract
- I’ve got this knot of a decision I keep turning over in my head and it just stays a fog
- I get stuck circling these big "why am I like this, why can’t I just cope" questions, and the more I chew on them the worse and more stuck I feel
- I’m putting in the work but I honestly can’t tell if I’m getting better or just spinning my wheels
- I’m stuck endlessly in my head
Practices that may help
- Rate emotional intensity before and after
Record your emotional intensity (0–100) at the start and end of each thought record to track real change.
The Thought Record: CBT’s Core Self-Examination Tool - Use morning pages to clarify a decision or stuck feeling
When you feel blocked, vague, or confused, write the confusion out until it resolves.
Morning Pages, Made Practical - Shift from abstract "why" to concrete "how"
Replace "why am I like this?" with "how can I do the next small thing?"
Rumination-Focused CBT, Made Practical - Track performance goals with quantitative metrics
Measure progress toward performance goals with numbers you collect, not impressions.
Process Goals, Made Practical - Track body sensation (the felt sense)
Follow raw physical sensation with curiosity — tingling, warmth, pressure — rather than the storyline.
Somatic Experiencing, Honestly Explained - Bias toward action over deliberation
Ship a rough version fast to learn what the problem actually is rather than theorizing indefinitely.
Creative Confidence, Made Practical - Catch automatic thoughts in the moment
Name the specific thought that arose, not just the feeling it created.
Cognitive Restructuring: The CBT Method for Changing Unhelpful Thoughts - Change exactly one element and observe what shifts
Alter a single variable at a time to see how the rest of the system responds.
Oblique Strategies, Made Practical - Build agency with deliberate small wins
Stack a series of small, completable actions to give yourself direct evidence that you can move outcomes.
Locus of Control: Building a Sense of Agency - Set clear, immediate goals before starting
Define success for the next 25–90 minutes before you sit down — vague intent prevents flow.
Flow and Meaning: Csikszentmihalyi’s Framework
Related concerns
- When The Miracle Question Miracle Question Self Coaching
Use the miracle question on yourself — in a journal or reflection — whenever you’re stuck or unclear about what you want.
The Miracle Question as a Self-Coaching Tool
- Feelings Vs Thoughts
Treat each thought as weather — it arrived, it will leave — rather than as a statement about reality.
Observing thoughts as arising and passing events
- How Do I Stop Overthinking And Get Things Done I Feel Stuck I Don T Progress Because Of This
Work through old, unfinished tasks in order rather than perpetually re-triaging them.
Systematically process the backlog
- Non Instrumental Thinking
Observe thoughts from an imagined internal vantage point that has no stake in their content.
Take the Free Observer stance
- Relabelling Thoughts
Match the thought to a known thinking trap — catastrophizing, mind-reading, all-or-nothing.
Name the cognitive distortion
- Rfcbt Concreteness
Build the concrete processing habit with low-stakes content before applying it to distressing topics.
Practise concrete thinking with neutral material
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