Its a really annoying problem that i always get

I couldnt word it before but now i can so i write it down. I always feel like im avoiding and now i know why, because people say dont go there, dont think about the thoughts, just notice it then focus on somethinh else. And for me when i try to not go there i feel like ik avoiding cause the urge of thinking about it is so strong that i have to fight to not go there and it becomes a fight then my mind sees that im having a problem so it gets worse. And then when i try to ignore or shift my attention it becomes an avoidance like its just too much power on trying to not focus on it. Also i start to say i dont want to think about this cause i know its ocd and ita bad for me but it gets worse and worse and then i feel like nothing helps cause i still avoid even if i try to do what i should do... any advice?

Username: djfloriodjflorio

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 37w ago

You may be interested in Daniel Wegner's study on the "ironic process," also known as "don't think about white polar bears." What you're noticing here is that the more you try NOT to think about something, the more often those exact thoughts will arise. This falls in line with the Ironic Process. I think what people mean when they say to "not go there," is that you don't want to hold onto the thoughts. You can think a thought, notice that it's there, and then let it go. That's not the same as actively trying to avoid the thought, which results in the thoughts coming back harder. Perhaps some imagery would be helpful. Imagine your train of thoughts as a literal freight train. You're sitting on a patch of grass next to the train tracks as the train passes by. Latching onto a thought is like jumping onto the train and riding with it. When this happens, you're taken out of the present moment (the patch of grass) and become lost in a fantasy world. The goal here is to simply watch the train go by. You aren't ignoring it or pretending it isn't there, you just watch the cars as they pass. Thoughts don't need to be analyzed. They aren't really trying to "tell you something." What IS trying to tell you something are you feelings and emotions. Those are what you want to focus your attention on. Thoughts are just the brain's attempts at making sense of the world and your feelings.

Username: 777Q777Q

Date posted: 37w ago

Two things come to mind . The brain gets bored easily and it thinks it helping by giving something to dwell on . What I do is try to engage with the unwanted thoughts in as much an indifferent way as possible recognizing they are there and going about my business.

Username: PRIV8PRIV8

Date posted: 37w ago

Plus i forgot, if i dont have the sudden anxious feeling then i start to think about the thought. I noticed it right now that a thought didnt made me anxious as it used to so i started think about it more like im interested in it... its like automatically i think about these things

Username: blueteddybear

Date posted: 1y ago

Feeling like I need to solve

Sometimes I have so much going on in my head at one time - and I have layers of intrusive thoughts one on top of another - all together and sometimes I don't know or remember which one caused my anxiety but I have to go back and solve them or reproduce the feeling that came up so that I can "disregard" it properly. It gets so exhausting because I'm always chasing after random thoughts and feelings all about similar themes - that are constantly getting triggered - by silly things. The fear is - I won't know its ocd unless i go back and solve them. I think this might be a compulsion? Does sitting with the discomfort with this Also work?

Username: Anonymous

Date posted: 46w ago

avoidance

I tend to avoid situations where I feel I could become uncomfortable or anxious, or things can trigger an unwanted thought. Avoidance seems to be the biggest thing I struggle with. Once I get a bad thought about a situation, I want to avoid it as much as possible. my mind runs so many different scenarios of unwanted thoughts happening, which makes me want to avoid the situation altogether. because then I start to feel anxious and panicked and worry “what if something does happen”. It feels like my brain is constantly looking for ways to make me uncomfortable, so it’s easier to avoid situations where I feel like I may feel triggered. I’m not sure how to deal with this. certain situations I can’t avoid. I know I’m going to have to sit through discussions I’ll find uncomfortable. it’s going to ruin my day. And I’ll spend the rest of the day analysing every detail of what happened or how I reacted. im not sure how to combat this.

"Pure" OCD

Username: Michie

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 35w ago

Is this avoidance?

So I’m going through a little bit of a rough patch. I did an ERP exercise yesterday and it went good but I still feel like my mind is everywhere all at once, all these awful thoughts nagging at me but sometimes especially today it’s like there just noise in my head so I’m letting the anxiety be there but as soon as I have an intrusive thought I’m like ya no I’m not listening to that or thinking about that today and I continue on with my day, I’m not sure if that’s ok or if that’s avoidance because I’m not thinking about the thought if that makes sense but then in the same breath if I’m thinking on it and be like ok I’ll let the thought be there and see how I feel in my body is that not checking and rumination? Almost like I’m checking to see if that topic still makes me anxious?

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Its a really annoying problem that i always get

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