Rumination doesn’t actually lead to solutions, and can leave you more depressed, anxious, and unsure. How do you stop ruminating?

How to stop the cycle? If I don’t ruminate I feel like I’m trying to avoid and push down the thoughts (the pink elephant analogy) and I know that doesn’t work.

Yup. My ocd involves rumination completely. It's funny no matter how much you go over it in your head there is always that little voice saying, but.....

Rumination is, in my opinion, at the core of all OCD. The trick is to stop trying to solve the problem you feel compelled to analyze.

My biggest compulsion is rumminaton and I can never seem to catch it in time to stop it from happening. It really hurts me

“Maybe, maybe not.” And then I go back to what I was doing and try to focus on something in the present moment without forcing away the discomfort.

Is there an answer here

So true! However, lot of awareness where the anxiety arises from, what is bothering us has to be understood. Self realization how one follows patterns has to be identified. Usually this happens because of the emotions we cannot allow. When one feels sadness or grief instead of feeling, allowing all scary thoughts one resorts to control thoughts/stop and suppress emotions. As a result mind goes into inflicted obsession which leads to anxiety. Then brain resorts to compulsions, rumination becomes part of it and turns to conscious cycle. Hence, when one feels the emotion, feel it. Say it's okay I am feeling sadness, lot of thoughts are haunting however I will go along with it. Keep going with whatever you are doing. In matter of sometime(depends on practise) you will get involved in the work. There is no happy feeling and one shouldn't expect for that. This practise has to be done always and slowly daily life can be managed. This takes further and lot of realisations assist parallel. It's a rough road and keep trying! Hope this helps which is helping me. Healing is never linear😊

I've really been struggling with ruminating.

My ocd revolves around rumination. It demands to ruminate a thought whole day,week,,,,

I remind myself that the thoughts are not important. It is SO hard when you first start. But not all your thoughts need to be important. Sometimes feels and thoughts just don’t matter. You don’t HAVE to pay attentention to them. If I’m really really struggling, I find something else to focus on. I’m not ignoring the thought, it can be there, but I do need to move on and find something else to do. Ali Greymond on YouTube is great for rumination tips.

Knowing it’s a compulsion helps me. When I realize it’s starting I remind myself it’s an OCD compulsion and that I don’t have to go along. I heard someone talking about decreasing the amount of minutes she spent ruminating a little every day and just hearing that was possible helped me to separate the ruminating from ME so I could choose not to start. Once I’m in it, it can feel impossible to stop so if I can catch it at the start I think that works best. The “maybe” mantra helps, too. Or even saying, “yep, probably. And also, what a pretty day it is today” or something like that. Embracing uncertainty and being present. 👌🏼❤️

It’s funny because I feel so guilty if I don’t ruimiate! Like im evil if I don’t try and find out if it’s a genuine problem or not, but the more I think the more confused I get! :,^) it’s funny how these things word

I let my obsessions hang out in my awareness and not mentally talk back at all. It is bothersome for the first hour or two and i feel anxiety, but i just let it sit and do nothing. We all know its a compulsion so its smth to work out. This is ultimately what takes our health away and drags us into a mental hole.

A few nights ago I left the tv on at night. I didnt have negative thoughts in the morning.

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That’s exactly what rumination does to me. If I do it I start feelings all these physical sensations and anxiety. If I don’t fight it everything goes away. :)

By being mindful

Does anyone spiral? Ex. For ROCD, If i fantasize about attractive woman I saw that must mean I really want them instead, which means I don't love my partner. Which means I am in the wrong relationship, which means I should break up with her. Etc

What’s the solution if I don’t ruminate i feel like it is stuck in my head and I can’t sleep

There are plenty of people in this world leaving in doubt about their ex spouses/partners with lingering questions about what did or didnt happen. They continue to live with that uncertainty and you are not able to, due to ocd. I feel like with ocd, content is absolutely irrelevant because ocd will not accept logic. Say you had a theme of health ocd and your doctor gave you closure that you are healthy ->your ocd would say maybe youre not. It's a doubting disorder regardless of the theme (even if you had a convo with your ex that felt like closure, ocd would ruminate further).

I experienced a trigger, and without my support group, I would not understand what I was going through. OCD there s feelings felt but not expressed..... Therefore, I must be my true authentic self 99 times out of a hundred, if not more. Connecting to myself and not worrying about the outcome of be genuine, kind and smart..... I then owe no apologies, or amends, because I am focused on taking care of who "me" is !! Sounds clear, understandable and easy peasy...... When I start to remuniate, STOP..... FOCUS ON MY TRUE SELF

I interrupt ruminations with a song that I sing about the emotion I might be trying to avoid. And for my next number...pick something I want to think about or sing about.

*sometimes even

My OCD is different from a ton of peoples. I have relationship OCD but instead of doubt my feelings for the person, I doubt the relationship / reality of the relationship/ and persons feelings for me after the ending. It’s tough for me to not ruminate on something like a real event like this because I feel like I NEED to understand and NEED to know. How else would I process my experiences, learn or ever know what’s going on in my life I don’t *dont figure it out* (which is what we’re supposed to not do in OCD recovery) This puts me in a bind because I can’t do what most people can do in these situations - come to a conclusion with their experience and move on. So the normal rule of “don’t figure it out” makes me panic because I’m my case my fears are real, rational, and valid and ignoring them seems impossible and even irresponsible. It’s even harder because (and this might be my OCD) the answers I’m searching for can be right in my face and any other healthy person can see it, but I can’t so I get frustrated that I can’t “see” this elusive thing and feel if I think about it more, ruminate one more time, try to solve it, I can eventually see. But then I always end up doubting what I’ve come up with. It’s so exhausting. Anyone understand?

MY TRUE FEELINGS AND TRUE THOUGHTS AND Express myself concisely, and clearly AS FAST as I CAN !!

.....when the anxiety first begins..... I must learn to catch myself when I begin to fly...... I try to fly away from my feelings, and or expression, out of fear. OCD is a fear based disorder... When I first begin to feel like I need to run, STOP, and express my true being

I dislike Law Enforcement carrying higu powered handguns..... A health fear I was taught about...... I just wish people could all learn the get along.

a healthy

I have a crush on this certain man..... I am hetrosexual....... I am a wooo-man!! I spoke to him a week or so ago, we ran into each other...... My heart was going pitter patter..... I stumbled on getting my story out I was sharing, but I did get it out..... He must have known I was flying or spinning...... I like being in-love vs loving each other....... I have had a bf for the last two and a half yrs....... It deminished my suicidal thinking, as I explored my feelings and thoughts..... I learned that I can feel without flying...... I can be ok with me, regardless of what choices he makes. It has been a period of learning about "me......."

Loving proactively is just as good as being in-love.

.....being genuine, kind and smart

That's sounds like a sweet way to handle distress.....l There are 7-8 catagories of OCR Just like Narricism, in the DSM manual

I know what a healthy relationship should look like and I also take note of red flags, as we travel along this journey we call life.

I also recommend subscribing to Psychology Today.... Did I spell that right ?

I can learn for the articles written in there.