How do I get rid of intrusive thoughts?
I have OCD (or, rather, I now have obsessive-compulsive tendencies; after treatment it is no longer a disorder for me), and I had intrusive thoughts that were disturbing and graphic (deliberately crashing into oncoming traffic, stabbing people if I picked up a pair of scissors, etc). I spent five months seeing a cognitive-behavioral therapist, and I'm no longer troubled by intrusive thoughts. In therapy OCD patients learn both that everyone has random disturbing thoughts at some point (doesn't mean a person will ever act on them!) and the techniques that can be used to break the obsession on the intrusive thoughts. On the first day I saw my therapist, he gave me a long list (multiple pages) of answers from an anonymous survey asking people about their intrusive thoughts. These were people without OCD who were just found in the general population. Their thoughts were actually much more graphic, aggressive, and disturbing than mine had been (sex with family members, putting their dog in the oven and roasting it, pulling out their eyeballs), and it made me feel much better to see that intrusive thoughts do indeed happen to everyone. The difference is that for people without OCD, the thoughts don't cause them any anxiety. After treatment, my reaction became that of a "normal" person. When such thoughts come to my mind now, which they do far less frequently, they pass through without me giving them any attention and without increasing my overall anxiety level.In my experience and that of other OCD sufferers I've read about, the single best thing a person who is suffering from intrusive thoughts can do is see a therapist who has experience treating people with anxiety disorders. Cognitive-behavioral therapy has a good success rate with OCD patients, and if the disorder is particularly severe, various antidepressants can be used. There is help out there, and it's entirely possible to be a person with OCD (even severe forms) and after treatment go on to lead a perfectly normal life. I highly recommend finding a cognitive-behavioral therapist in your area if you're having this problem.
Unwanted intrusive thoughts please help?
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Help!!! How can I stop constant intrusive thoughts?
Sounds like "panic" attacks to me. Your miscarriage may have brought on PTSD or post traumatic stress disorder. PTSD can cause these thoughts at times,these thoughts are all anxiety related probably. It could worsen and you could develop obsessive compulsive disorder OCD. I know the common perception of people with OCD is that they constantly wash their hands. I have OCD, and my OCD includes counting things and being obsessive about time..I look at my watch 50-70 times a day. This OCD is your bodys' defense against these obtrusive thoughts. From personal experience I suggest you get help. I still feel guilty to this day that I did not get help sooner than I did. A visit to the emergency room could help you feel better and they may give you a mild sedative. I hope that you can look up a therapist and call for an appointment. Just say you would like an evaluation for generalized anxiety disorder. You will fill out some forms(a questionaire) and then talk to a therapist. Do not worry about the stigma attached to seeing a therapist...please get help. Your symptoms are real...this can develop into an illness ...I am on three different medications now for the past 6 years. If I had gotten help sooner I might not need some of the meds. Please make a call....it will be a great help to you.
What are some ways to help patients with intrusive thoughts?
If you're referring to OCD, the #1 treatment is exposure and response prevention. I have a lot of information about it (including my firsthand experience) at OCD.
Help 17 have bad anxiety and have violent intrusive thoughts?
Please help me, I have disturbing intrusive thoughts that I know that I would never do, is it because I'm depressed or maybe always anxious or social anxiety, I know I would never punch, hurt or stab anyone , is this normal? I feel like I'm going to be received as crazy if I told anyone.
Horrible intrusive thoughts? OCD?
Having bad thoughts doesn't make you a bad person. Intrusive thoughts are involuntary and you can't help them anymore than you can help thinking about ducks when you see a duck. OCD affects 1 in 50 people, it's not rare, and though they're spoken about less, almost everyone with OCD has distressing an disturbing thoughts. People with OCD who enjoy beating their wives don't have intrusive thoughts about beating their wives, because it wouldn't bother them. Intrusive thoughts usually centre around the thing you hate most. It sucks, but as I said, it's not rare. Many people (including me) are going through the same thing. Don't stress or over analyse these thoughts. Don't let them bother you. The fact that you are letting them bother you could be making them worse. Just ignore it and accept that they are uncontrollable thoughts that don't reflect how you really feel. You won't act on these impulses, simply because you fear it so much. You have never done it before, try to trust in yourself. Fearing you will lose control is common, not just with OCD, but with other anxiety disorders and depression. You won't act on these impulses, you say you hate violence, you sound like a good person. Just forget about these thoughts as much as you can. Don't fight them, just pay no attention to them.
Intrusive thoughts when masturbating? Help?
Your mind is just messing with you. When we see images of people we don't know but they look similar to people we do know, it's totally Normal to associate one person with the other. It doesn't mean there anything wrong with you at all! And No, don't tell your boyfriend..no need to make him think you're being weird when in fact, you're just being normal.
What exercises or things have help you with intrusive thoughts, rituals, and compulsions?
“Intrusive thoughts, rituals, and compulsions” is the long way to describe obsessive-compulsive disorder, which is best treated with exposure and response prevention (ERP) therapy. This is the frontline treatment for OCD and recommended by all OCD experts. As someone who went through 20 years of suffering, 5 years of talk therapy, and a ton of prescriptions, I have to say the best decision I made was to do 12 weeks of ERP, after which my OCD was under my control for the first time since I was seven years old. I still take medication, but if I had to choose between ERP and medication, ERP would for sure win.I write extensively about OCD and ERP at www.jackieleasommers.com/OCD. There is a letter to sufferers with detailed instructions at www.jackieleasommers.com/OCD-help. Blessings!
How do I stop intrusive thoughts when having OCD?
That’s a mistake. You’ll just trigger the ironic effect and make them stronger. Best way is to watch, to sort of let them flow and laugh at them. Understand it’s a natural phenomenon of the brain and that they’re not stopped in their tracks due to some insufficiencies in GABA and/or some other neurotransmitters, which in their turn are also caused by thought/behaviour pattern and/or some dysfunction in gene expression.Think about it this way. By treating them with too much seriousness, you’re fueling your anxiety. OCD is an anxiety disorder, it’s like a graduation from anxiety to a whole new level of neuroticism. Think of them like bubbles of a boiling soup. If you allow the temperature to decrease, the bubbles will decrease as well. Don’t feed the fire, just carry on, understanding it’s an unpleasant side effect of your current neurological state. If you try to block them, you make things worse. Rather teach yourself to refocus, laugh it away, learn the patterns and set anchors for the future. Meditation and other forms of more mundane relaxation can help quite a bit.
How can I be free of anxiety and intrusive thoughts?
You are the father and mother of these anxiety inducing thoughts. First, think bad about yourself and you will feel bad. Think instead every day as you wake up that you are a good person and start feeling good. When these anxiety inducing thoughts come, you must immediately distract yourself and think of something else. This could be solving a problem? It could be switching on some relaxing music. But the most effective method is to think out a problem and do something (so you are occupied with two things, physical and mental). So music, dance or sing to the music. Go for a walk, prepare a meal, make yourself a drink.If you are a naturally anxious person then reserve life problems for when you are undertaking exercise (walking, swimming etc). Regular moderate exercise should be good for you. Regular sleep patterns are good.Take a regular balanced diet. When you feel anxious is a good time for exercise. There is no need to eliminate alcohol, but say, more than two glasses of wine a day is to be avoided. Better still one glass of wine a day. Exercise tends to make you feel better and alcohol may make you feel depressed. In an emergency, when distraction is not working? Immediately do some exercise to burn off the adrenaline, say dancing or running on the spot? At the same time verbalise or think "the, the, the, the"... repeat until the thought has been extinguished. Continually thinking "the" and doing the exercise takes so many mental resources all other thoughts are crowded out.There is a joke about psychiatrists. How many psychiatrists to change a light bulb? Only one but the light bulb must want to be changed.You need to actively change your lifestyle. You will need to work at this.If you cannot control your intrusive thoughts by distraction techniques you need to see a doctor.