on one's mind

Idioms  

1. Also, on the brain. In one's thoughts, preoccupying one. For example, The book prize has been on my mind, but I haven't been able to discuss it with you. It is often put as have something on one's mind (or the brain) meaning “be preoccupied with something,” as in I didn't mean to be rude; I just have a lot on my mind right now, or John has nothing but girls on the brain. [Mid-1800s]

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Example Sentences

The game serves as a look into how living through hell can lead to a life of survivor’s guilt, wrecking havoc not just on one’s mind but on the relationships that matter most to us.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 18, 2020

The very nature of public life—for that matter, of social life—is not saying everything that’s on one’s mind.

From The New Yorker • Feb. 27, 2017

“It weighs heavy on one’s mind that your decision would impact the compensation of those who are sick,” Ms. McDonald said, “because if you don’t get 95 percent you’re not going to settle.”

From New York Times • Aug. 9, 2010

She had read a great deal, too—the really solid works that are such a nuisance to get through, and that leave a mark on one’s mind like the track of a steamroller.

From Man and Maid by Nesbit, E. (Edith)

To have one's self always on one's mind is to lodge a kill-joy; to act always from calculation is a sure path to blunders.

From Atlantic Classics by Various