Thoughts come and go: a plan, a memory, a judgment. Something is present when each one arrives and when it leaves. That something is awareness. You do not have to adopt a belief about it. You can check it right now.
Psychologists describe a related skill as self-distancing: stepping back and viewing an experience as an observer rather than from inside it. Research links it with lower emotional reactivity and less rumination (Kross & Ayduk, 2017). Contemplative traditions have pointed to this observer for much longer, and the Awareness movement of REAL Shift is a direct way of turning toward it.
It does not mean thoughts are bad, or that you should stop planning, feeling, or caring. It means you have a place to stand that is not inside every passing thought. Experienced meditators have been found to show different activity and connectivity in brain regions linked to self-referential thinking (Brewer et al., 2011). That is an association, not a proof, and the experiment above is something only you can run.
REAL Shift is a contemplative practice and an educational method, not a medical or psychological treatment. If you are struggling, please reach out to a qualified professional. In the U.S. you can call or text 988 at any hour.