Do you struggle with overthinking?

Take one hand, and touch each finger to your thumb, counting with each tap: 1, 2, 3, 4. Then, change up the counting: 2, 3, 4, 1; 3, 1, 2, 4; and so on.

Both the touch and the counting will help you focus on the present moment, according to Trey Tucker, a local licensed therapist with Elbow Tree counseling and a now-viral TikToker known for his quick mental health tips.

With 759,000 followers of his account, @ruggedcounseling, Tucker says he's still adjusting to being in front of the camera, but it's gotten easier since he posted his first mental health help video in November 2020. Since then, he's covered a variety of topics, ranging from relationships to anxiety to alcoholism and attachment styles.

"I don't think you have to be on TikTok to notice that anxiety and depression have skyrocketed," he says. "So, seeing people post about their own struggles, it helps [other] people to talk about theirs or, at least, think about theirs."

Tucker believes that TikTok is helping normalize conversations about mental health. What was previously discussed only in private with a therapist is now talked about openly by communities of people through the platform, helping people build trust and camaraderie with others experiencing the same.

— Chew some gum. — Place your hand on your chest for a few minutes. — Open your mouth as wide as your can, and say "R" three to four times. This will cause you to yawn, which activates your parasympathetic nervous system and helps you calm down.

Tucker's style gets straight to the point — which makes for good content on TikTok, with the highest-performing videos ranging from only 21 to 34 seconds, according to app data. Many of his videos are 30 seconds or less, with his most popular one — with 10 million views — just 15 seconds long.

But he says he doesn't measure success by number of likes or followers, but rather if his content has value and meaning for someone. He says he likes to think of his counseling as walking alongside somebody as they're going through a forest.

"They're trying to find their way out of the forest. They don't really necessarily know where to go or what to do, but me coming alongside them, us walking together, we can find the way out," he says.

Trey Tucker's 'Mental Health Thoughts of the Day." You can find these and more by following him on TikTok or Instagram @ruggedcounseling.

— "The only two things you have control over are your thoughts and your actions. And every second you complain is another second you are actively choosing to not be happy. "

— "You can't make someone love you by giving them more of what they already don't appreciate."

— "If you put up a front or fake version of yourself when you're around people, deep down, you probably think it's safer because if they reject the fake version of you it doesn't hurt nearly as bad as the pain of them rejecting the real you. My question to you is, who taught you the real version of you isn't good enough?"

— "One of the coolest psychology facts I know is when you put your hand on your chest, it lights up the same part of your brain as when you get a hug. Leave it on there for a couple minutes, and you'll start feeling more relaxed and peaceful."

Jennifer Bardoner Editor editor@chatterchattanooga.com

Amy Horne Advertising Operations Manager o: 423-757-6289 c: 423-618-3629 ahorne@timesfreepress.com

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