Posted by TommyIsland on November 28, 2004, at 14:11:27
In reply to Re: Meds for Obsessional Thoughts » TommyIsland, posted by tom_traubert on November 28, 2004, at 11:03:32
>I know what u mean about trying to change the thoughts but at the same time I feel that the thoughts themself are so gripping because it actually becomes a phobia entangled in your mind. It almost seems like a neverending circle of reactions followed by dread. I would like to think that if u can "De-Power" the thoughts and get a grip on them, u can see that they are simply irrational fears. My thoughts like I said earlier are all based around things that can't be proved 100%. For example, I'm not obsessed with flying away like a helium balloon because gravity exists 100% and I know were not going to floar away. When we enter the human character........that is were I have been able to really dig in and obsess away to the point where I can't actually find any proofs. For example, I look at personality and I then analyze it and tear it down with "What If's." I can start breaking it down and it seems to have immediate results. I don't want to weigh u down with more meaningless thoughts so I'll end it at that but I just wanted to give you an idea of the kind of thoughts I'm personally dealing with. It really all leads me to realize it's completely self sabotaging self destrucive behavior. It's like I'm on this neverending quest to disprove the things in life that make us happy and prove that there just fabricated ideas and emotions that can be changed as quickly as they can be broken down and challenged. I know this sounds like a horrible thing to obsess about but it truly has me in it's "Vice Grips" and I need to be released to enjoy my life again. Sometimes I just wish I could get hypnotized to forget these things or even get ECT and maybe I would forget these obsessions. I actually feel that if I hadn't stumbled into this way of thinking, I would never be like the way I am. I really feel like I'm just completely over taken by these thoughts and ideas and as a result I have a true phobia of thinking about these things because in my mind they have power and credibility that I can't disprove or shake away as just purely "nonsense." If you can relate to me I guess I would be happy but if you can't, I'm just as happy for you because it is a living hell man. Any advice from this monologue I just wrote would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Tommy!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The book does give advice, but not how to "change" your thought patterns, because trying to change the thoughts is a big part of the problem. The goal is to identify the thoughts as being irrational and OCD only, and not reacting to them, which is very difficult because as you know, the thoughts don't exist by themselves. They bring a visceral sense of dread, an anxiety and panic that compels you to try and figure everything out, because if you don't, you feel like you're going to die or have a panic attack or "go crazy."
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> The problem with talking about this with anyone who has not experienced it firsthand is that they will tell you, "ok, so big deal, so don't worry about it, it's just thoughts" which is invalidating and infuriating. They don't know the anxiety which hits you out of nowhere, they don't know the vise grips around your stomach, they don't know that it's not just the thoughts but the fact that they don't leave you any room to think about anything else. Which is why the structure of panic and anxiety has to be looked at also. Most nervous people will think of a million other things to do than look at their anxiety up close, I know it was like that with me. To just look at it without trying to find the magic solution, the magic unresolved anger from the past, the one thing they could've done differently---NO, you must look at what anxiety is, and not just its sypmtoms. For, this, an excellent book is "Don't Panic." Another book that deals with it in more depth (don't let the name turn you off, you don't need to have a phobia to read this book, it's got great great stuff in it) is "The Anxiety and Phobia Workbook"
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poster:TommyIsland
thread:420388
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20041128/msgs/421353.html