Rumination and Worry

Ruminative thinking can be described as a tendency to dwell on the same thoughts or experiences from the past associated with failure and negative feelings. There is often a focus on the causes and consequences associated with the failure instead of solutions.

Rumination can also centre on goal-achievement and correction of mistakes, or be about random topics as a way to distract from experiences from the past associated with failure. Worry is similar to rumination except worry focuses on events in the future.

Worry is furthermore regarded as a form of verbal mental problem solving about potentially negative future events. Rumination and worry can be a problem in our lives when it becomes very frequent, obsessive and difficult to control or dismiss. It can be considered healthy to think about a past mistake once so you can correct it, or think about a future potential problem briefly so you can solve it or prepare for it.

Ruminating and worrying excessively can be considered as unhealthy and often leads to depression and anxiety.