Definition of Insanity: The Karmic Hamster Wheel
Originally published September 4, 2013 | Updated 2025
The Loop We Can’t See
You’ve probably heard the saying: “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.”
Yet here we are—thinking the same thoughts, replaying the same memories, making the same choices, and wondering why our lives don’t change.
This is what I call the karmic hamster wheel—the repeating cycle of thought, emotion, and behavior that keeps us unconsciously looping through familiar experiences, even when we say we want something new.
If you’ve ever found yourself in the same relationship dynamic, reacting the same way, or returning to an old coping mechanism you swore you’d outgrown… you’re not alone.
Why We Keep Repeating the Past
From a spiritual perspective, our conditioning runs deep.
According to Vedanta, we come into this life carrying the software of the soul—a blueprint of past actions (karma), impressions (samskara), and desires (vasanas).
Each experience creates a memory. Each memory fuels a desire. Each desire leads to more action—and so the cycle continues.
Over time, this programming becomes our identity.
We confuse habit for truth and pattern for personality. The real work begins when we wake up enough to ask, “Is this truly who I am—or just who I’ve been?”
The Role of Awareness and Commitment
Awareness cracks the cycle open.
Meditation and mindful self-inquiry allow us to witness our own thoughts and behaviors instead of being ruled by them. From that place of observation, we can finally see the pattern—and make a conscious choice to do something different.
But awareness alone isn’t enough.
Change requires commitment—a willingness to move through the doorway of transformation and not turn back. That means reorganizing priorities, investing time and energy, and staying present when resistance shows up.
Commitment is not punishment. It’s liberation. It’s saying, “I choose to evolve.”
Breaking Free from the Karmic Wheel
To step off the hamster wheel, start by noticing what keeps you on it.
Ask yourself:
What am I repeating—thoughts, reactions, choices—that no longer serves me?
What am I getting from staying the same (comfort, safety, control)?
What would I gain if I chose differently, even once?
Remember, transformation doesn’t happen overnight—it happens one conscious decision at a time.
You are not your patterns. You are the awareness capable of transcending them.
Self-Reflection + Inspired Action
Identify one pattern you repeat and ask how it’s serving or sabotaging you.
Name one dysfunctional habit or emotional loop you’re ready to release.
Reflect: Have I learned the lesson here, or am I still spinning through it?
You become as free as you’re willing to become conscious.
Next Step in Your Inner Work
If this resonates, explore practical ways to step off your own karmic wheel.
Start with my 10-Day Own Your Shadow Challenge — simple steps, profound shifts, real integration.
Or sign up for my weekly email for reflections, tools, and practices to support your emotional healing and self-mastery journey.
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Author Bio:
Tris Thorp is a master coach with 20+ years of experience, an international best-selling author, speaker, and emotional healing expert who helps high-performing women heal the anxious–avoidant attachment loop through shadow work and subconscious reprogramming.