personally, i list this as my meanest psych symptom. "rumination" is my current favorite name for ^it^, but by whatever name, it can eat me alive, from the inside out. when i set to ruminating, i can turn a june bug landing in my coffee into a cosmic conspiracy where mother nature, herself, is behaving inappropriately and in need of immediate intervention, by my rules, of course. the unknown moron who cut me off in traffic is worthy of a lynch mob, carefully directed by myself, of course.

sigh. . .

prayer and distraction are my most effective tools for this gnarly symptom. when i catch myself ruminating, i say a little prayer --as often as needed-- for guidance and then i busy out on something physical. if i have let the rumination escalate to anger, anger channeling is the something physical i use to distract myself. alas, it is seldom a quick or complete fix. repeat as needed, for as long as needed.

I tend to do this, too, and for myself often with things of little consequence to others.

I was in a car accident at age 14 and still remember from time to time the first days and nights following that vivid snapshots in my mind of all the details that replayed in my head over and over and over as my brain processed all that frightening and confusing and painful details and then added the physical fears and then bigger questions about life and death, and, and, and...

I needed some time with ruminating to heal. So ruminating isn't always negative.

A couple of really easy things sometimes help me when I am stuck in ruminating and a private or shared expression of anger.:

1. I calm myself for a few minutes soon after an intense event with "centered breathing." The Internet has video clips showing/explaining that. So, when I was last cut off in driving, I pulled off the road and did several minutes of this slow, very focused breathing that activates the vagus nerve to activate a calming heart and arousal response. By the end of that, I was less shaken, and able to remember an experience some years before of my having been the person who accidentally and dangerously cut off another as I was driving my terminally ill parent home from an appointment and had a moment of inattention.

2. If I am aware that I am stuck in ruminating, and I am aware that I am amping up my emotions for an anger spillover, I schedule an appointment with myself to review this in an appointment for a specific time the next day. I am the chair of that meeting and required to take legible notes. Oddly, I usually miss the meeting, having "forgotten" the appointment!

Hoping today is an easier one for you, with low rumination needs, and more beauty to capture your focus. Refocusing is for sure tough to be managing when depression heightens underlying irritability.

A pat on the shoulder to you.

I used to do that a lot, especially when people took advantage of me. My Aunt is a big manipulator and used to upset me so much, I kind of had a little nervous breakdown and cut her off until I felt better. You need to distract yourself. You like going for walks. Take a nice walk when you feel angry. The fresh air and exercise will work wonders.

Yah, I hold on to annoyance, and anger, I am more annoyed, From A situation 30-some years ago (long story) Long story short........I was given a job(s) As a diversion, Thinking I would forget about it.

It just re-surfaced a few years ago, been annoying ever since.

Oh yes, I do this. I think most everyone does. It is annoying and upsetting when something like this happens. And we do replay it in our mind a couple of times (sometimes many times).

I think some things that help are talking to a friend or your girlfriend about what happened (venting it out). Writing it down in a journal (get it all out). And exercising (taking your walks), to get the feel-good exercise chemicals back into our brains.

Soon, you should forget about it. Life has many annoyances. It happens to all of us. We get upset, but then try to just move on from it. Tomorrow is a new day.

Hope this helps.

I can relate to it on so many levels, happens with me as well. I guess I am a bit sensitive and short-tempered which makes me hold on to grudges. Honestly speaking , this habit of overthinking and getting angry just ruins your mental health. One of the best ways to deal with situations like these that has worked for me is developing positive thoughts and using positive affirmations to fight overthinking and negative thoughts. Meditation also helps in calming the mind. So there is this website, that I visit for mental health tips https://yourmentalhealthpal.com/, you can visit too and see if it works for you , the way these blogs have helped me control this problem. Goodluck