How do I stop ruminating and start actually making changes in my life?

You're naming something Patanjali spent his entire philosophy untangling: the gap between thinking about change and actually practicing it. The mind loves to circle. It's safe there. Real change requires you to move from the mental to the embodied—from knowing you should meditate to sitting down, from believing you need boundaries to actually saying no. This is where psychological transformation begins. It's not glamorous. You'll think about the thing you want to change a thousand times. But only the *actions* reshape your mind, not the thoughts about actions. Patanjali called this 'abhyasa'—disciplined, repeated practice. Here's what works: stop expecting yourself to think your way into a new life. Pick one tiny practice related to your suffering. One. Not meditation and journaling and therapy and diet. One practice, done badly, every day. Your ruminating mind will fight you. It will suggest you need to think more before you act. That's the mind protecting its familiar groove. Notice that resistance, then do the practice anyway. The mastery comes not from having perfect thoughts, but from interrupting the thought-loop with action. Your mind follows your behavior, not the other way around.