- Date posted
- 40w
Engaging with thoughts
Have you ever engaged in a thought and only left you more confused?
Have you ever engaged in a thought and only left you more confused?
Of course. This is rumination. You can’t analyze OCD or use logic against it. It will always find something new to throw at you. Even when you think you have the answer, it creates something else. Try your best to not engage and just give neutral responses, and live in the moment.
Thank you!! ❤️🩹I'm having intrusive thoughts like: I want this. And then I think maybe I want this if... And I freak out
@llalala Yes, I deal with the same thoughts and feelings - that I want this, I like this, I will act on this, etc. I completely understand. It doesn’t matter how it’s phrased though, still just thoughts. Still just feelings. I like to say to myself “no amount of analysis will be enough.”
Yep, it leaves me feeling worse. Sometimes I’ll think maybe deep down I like this and I’m just scared of judgement. Sometimes I’ll think maybe it’s okay to think or want this. Sometimes I’ll think it’s not as bad as it seems (to a particularly vile thought). It leaves us feeling confused because it a form of checking + rumination. As if subconsciously you want to make sure you still have morals after you’ve justified something that you know goes against your beliefs (but in that moment you doubt it) Is similar to what you experience?
@isshpra 🫶🏻 Yes!! Exactly. Sometimes I think "is this really wrong?" or "someone did this, are they wrong?". It's scary. It's good to know I'm not alone.
@llalala I’ve found myself almost feeling bad for terrible people on the news. It makes me feel so ashamed but I know it’s not real. It’s just all another form of checking and ruminating. It’s you trying to deal with really big emotions that come from dealing with this disorder. None of it is real no matter how real it feels.
@isshpra 🫶🏻 Yes!!! this happens to me too🥹
Oh yeah. I’ve yelled at it before “wtf do you want from me” and just get crickets… You can’t logic it , argue with it or reason with it. There is always that next “what if”. The key is to acknowledge it’s there but don’t engage. Engaging is rumination which can become a compulsion. Compulsion feeds it. OCD grows and demands more food and now it consumes your day. You can’t push the thought away, you will just think of it more. Think of it like breathing. You breathe automatically until just now when I made you aware that you are breathing and now you might be doing it manually lol. Same thing with thoughts … they are automatic and just happen. We choose to engage with them. Then they become manual. Choose not to engage. Acknowledge it’s there and let it be. It’s tuff when you start but typically becomes more easy as you practice it.
@I’m Batman Thank you!! This is a really good explanation. I was having doubts the other day about thoughts being automatic, because people always say that intrusive thoughts are “the ones you don’t want”, but sometimes my thoughts are so confusing and so many that they seem “normal”.
Yessss
Yes, it’s rumination and it is a compulsion that just makes OCD worse.
Yes my problem is I would be stuck in a loop with those thoughts. It only made things worse for me.
@Anonymous Yes!! The comments here helped me a lot❤️🩹
Yes all the time ;-;
So I think what's been so specifically tough for me (idk if this is what others go through with the real event stuff) is that ... Well I basically have this mental system... - Something has been dealt with -- which means it's "ok" it's "acceptable" assessment of ___. Rumination to "problem solve" with the intrusive thought. - CONSTANT inquiries to Challenge that previous assessment conclusion i.e. "no that hasn't actually been deal with, you didn't think about ____ or this other angle or this other new thing related to it" etc. Idk how tf you fix that with ERP? Idk up from down at this point Is the "system" OCD? Should people not try to problem solve (even though it's actually rumination)? Should I not engage with the "challenges?" HOW TF does Peace of Mind actually happen when the answers seem to be "you must be delusional" or "you must leave (significant) things un-dealt with / open ended" Like, what's that actual solution here? Hopefully this made sense. Thanks
I honestly can’t tell when thoughts are being affected by OCD. Sometimes I think I have what I think are normal “grey” thoughts, but then OCD adds so much weight to them and I spiral. I had this thought that I wished my boyfriend was more confident or independent. I felt so guilty for thinking it. I told him, and of course it hurt him. He told me it’s a normal thought to have, I just dwell on it too much. And that it’s the kind of thought most people keep to themselves. That’s the thing. I don’t know what’s okay to keep to myself and what isn’t. I think sometimes I say things out loud not just to relieve anxiety, but because I genuinely don’t know what’s okay to think or say. I do not know the line between a normal grey thought and something that’s “bad” to think. I don’t know how to tell if it’s something I should process privately or something I need to be ashamed of. I get this confusion with intrusive thoughts too, but those are easier to spot and evaluate. This is harder, because again, it is *my* thought. That makes it harder to sit with. Maybe the intrusive part is the voice that questions what kind of person I am for even thinking it. I don’t have the same telltale signs anymore. My physical anxiety isn’t there anymore, it’s all in my head and that makes it so much more confusing. But I don’t know. The line between honesty vs compulsion is so blurry. I just feel lost
Hello everyone! I’m starting to recognize when my thoughts begin to spiral, when i’m seeking reassurance or checking. But I still have the sense of uneasiness and anxiety. I was wondering what others do that allow them to move forward with their day when they realize this? I don’t know if I’m making sense, but what are ways you pull the focus back to the present and yourself? Like besides saying “maybe or maybe not”, more like what do you do with yourself after you recognize the thoughts? I feel like I’m at a “now what?” and don’t know what to do with my anxious energy. I’m trying to find something physical to help me so if you also have any hobbies or interests that help I would love to hear it.
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