Wolfram
- Date posted
- 1y
Flashbacks vs ruminating
What's the difference between the two? I'm struggling to find an answer online because I don't understand
stolzstolz
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 1y
I would say that PTSD and OCD have some similarities. I got into a bad car accident and would have flashbacks about the accident. I would then ruminate about the accident for many hours. With OCD there are things that trigger me that are not trauma related, but cause me to worry and obsess about my actions.
Wolfram Wolfram
- Date posted
- 1y
Thanks for your answers. I hope you don't mind me asking but what do you personally define as a flashback? How does that play out differently to the ruminating that follows? If you don't want to talk about I understand and respect that
stolzstolz
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 1y
@Wolfram I would define a flashback as a distressing thought that makes me feel like I am reliving a traumatic moment. It feels like I’m at the scene of the accident as if it just happened. The rumination that follows could be thinking about getting into another accident in the future and conjuring many “what if” scenarios.
Wolfram Wolfram
- Date posted
- 1y
@stolz So it's not actually a visual flashback like depicted in films? It's just the memory of the feeling resurfacing, but not feeling like a memory? Like going through it again for the first time?
stolzstolz
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 1y
@Wolfram It’s a visual flashback as well as the feeling I had during the accident. It’s as if the accident is happening again in that moment. Like going through it again for the first time.
Wolfram Wolfram
- Date posted
- 1y
@stolz I'm so sorry you go through that. That's gotta be hell 😢 I get visual stuff sometimes but I think I just relive it emotionally and feel pushed into the backseat of my mind as the response takes over. I don't even feel like I'm on auto pilot, I feel like a passenger, helpless to control until it subsides
stolzstolz
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 1y
I tend to consider ruminating excessive thinking about one particular thing. Flashbacks can be example of something you ruminate about. I hope this helps.
Wolfram Wolfram
- Date posted
- 1y
So ruminating is a bit broader but flashbacks or more specific? It's confusing me because whenever I've seen depictions of flashbacks in films, it doesn't match what I've read and researched. That's ruminating to me. The videos seem to indicate flashbacks are a trauma response and I get that in particular situations. I'm trying to figure out the difference because I don't know if I need a different type of therapy to treat it
Amara Amara
- Date posted
- 1y
Flashbacks and rumination are similar in that they both involve recalling past experiences or events; however, they differ in their nature and focus: 1.Flashbacks are vivid and involuntary recollections of a traumatic or intense event from the past. They often involve feeling as though one is reliving the experience, with sensory details and emotions coming back as if the event is happening in the present moment. Flashbacks are commonly associated with conditions like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). 2.Rumination, on the other hand, is a pattern of repetitive and intrusive thinking about past events, often negative or distressing ones. It involves dwelling on past mistakes, regrets, or worries without finding resolution. Unlike flashbacks, rumination does not involve a sense of reliving the event but rather a mental preoccupation with it. In summary, while both flashbacks and rumination involve thoughts about the past, flashbacks are typically intense, sensory, and linked to trauma, whereas rumination is more about repetitive and prolonged thinking about past events without a sense of reliving them.
Wolfram Wolfram
- Date posted
- 1y
Thank you for this. This is very helpful. I believeI have compulsions that trigger flashbacks which is amazing to find out. That's going to help in my therapy so much. Thank you
Amara Amara
- Date posted
- 1y
@Wolfram Anytime 🙂. I wish you to get through this soon enough.
Wolfram Wolfram
- Date posted
- 1y
Are more specific *
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