Overthinking isn’t what it looks like. It isn’t a failure of the mind, it’s a sign that the mind has been asked for something in cannot give: certainty.
In the Relief of Not Knowing, Samuel Wood offers us a series of insights into what causes us to become stuck in loops of constant thinking, often leading to decision paralysis. Instead, his insights encourage us to stop overthinking and start making decisions so that we can truly live.
This book isn’t full of CBT theories or acronyms. Instead, it is written in an accessible and easy to digest way, with short chapters exploring the things that hold us back such as regret, judgement and self-doubt, while showing why thinking rarely produces the certainty we are searching for.
As someone who struggles with overthinking and anxiety, I love certainty. For a long time, I thought thinking more was always a good thing, until I realised that being trapped in that loop was actually preventing me from living- overthinking every decision to the point I would end up talking myself out of it and remaining stuck. This book served as a powerful reminder why we can sometimes get caught in this trap, and that we need to recongise when we get stuck, in order to live the life we truly want to live.
Overall, The Relief of Not Knowing is insightful, and thought-provoking, this book is a valuable read for anyone who finds themselves trapped in loops of analysis, second-guessing, or indecision.
Thank you to Headwater Press and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. The Relief of Not Knowing will be published on 9th June 2026.
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