Welcome back! For those of you who have been around awhile, you know about me and anxiety.
However, if you are new here, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Julie and I struggle with anxiety, OCD, and intrusive thoughts.
Shew! What an introduction! Can you imagine introducing yourself like that to someone face-to-face? I can, but I’m also super awkward. That’s another charming character trait of mine. Okay, I’m not doing myself any favors here. If you want to get to know me better, check out 25 Fun Facts About Me (then come right back and finish this post!).
Alright, let’s regroup here. Anxiety/OCD/Intrusive Thoughts…Go!
What I have come to learn is that people who don’t struggle with any sort of mental disorder have a very difficult time understanding/relating to those who do. It makes sense, I mean how do you understand something you have never experienced?
My hope is that by explaining my experience with intrusive thoughts it will help those who are unfamiliar better understand what they are.
What Are Intrusive Thoughts?
My very basic way of explaining intrusive thoughts is by describing it as having thoughts you don’t want to have, but a lot of them…all of the time.
A more medical/educated/easy-to-understand way to explain intrusive thoughts can be found on the Anxiety & Depression Association of America’s website. In an article titled Unwanted Instrusive Thoughts, intrusive thoughts are describe as having the following characteristics:
- Stuck thoughts that cause great distress.
- Seemingly come out of nowhere.
- Usually focus on violent, sexual, and/or socially unacceptable acts.
Sounds intense, right?! It can be, which is what makes it so scary.
What Does It Feel Like?
What do intrusive thoughts feel like? I can only speak to my own experiences and what they feel like to me. It may be different for others.
To me it feels like someone constantly speaking things I don’t want to think about in my ear. Constant. Nonstop. Not necessarily words, more like thoughts, but they are as clear in my mind as if someone were speaking out loud to me.
A lot (and I mean A LOT) of “what if this…” and “what if that…”.
I can remember laying on the couch with my eyes closed because I had to concentrate on not thinking. You know in movies when someone is in a super stressful situation and they go sit in the corner, close their eyes, and rock back and forth? That’s the same idea.
How Do I Live With Intrusive Thoughts?
Learning to live with instrusive thoughts isn’t difficult once you believe it’s possible. That is the hard part though…getting to a point where you believe it’s possible. It doesn’t feel possible sometimes. The thoughts are so clear and persistent that it is easy to forget that there was ever a time you didn’t have them or feel this way.
Flooding my mind with positive thoughts was what helped me the most. I’ve mentioned before that I was seeing a therapist at one point. He challenged me with homework between sessions:
- Think of 3 positive thoughts anytime I had 1 negative thought.
- Take a break from social media.
- Read.
He had other suggestions too, but the main idea was positive input = positive output. He explained that my brain (in it’s current state) was like a frayed wire that needed repair. Rest, avoiding stressful situations (if possible), and flooding my mind with positive thoughts & energy were the best ways to repair it.
Every single time I had an unwanted thought I would quickly think of 3 positive things. Some days it felt like all I did was try to think of positive replacement thoughts.
This went on for what felt like forever, BUT one day I realized I hadn’t needed any replacement thoughts that day. This was an actual miracle. What started happening is I would go longer and longer between intrusive thoughts.
Now, I can go weeks without an intrusive thought. When I do have one it usually isn’t very intense or disruptive to my day or mood.
Check out How To Be Happy for a few more ideas to get the positive energy flowing.
Do You Know Someone
Who Is Struggling?
Do you know someone who is struggling with intrusive thoughts, anxiety, depression, or any other mental illness? I don’t have any miracle advice other than to just be there for them. Listen to them. Let them know you love them. Don’t tell them how they should be feeling, but acknowledge and accept how they are feeling. Encourage professional help. Did I mention love them?
You can’t fix it for someone, but you can let them know you will be there to support them no matter what.
I hope this was helpful. I’d love to hear your thoughts. Is your experience similar to mine? Do you know someone with a simliar experience? A completely different experience? Tell me about it in the comments below.
Until next time,
Julie
Thanks for your post Julie. I know i struggle with intrusive thoughts, and I’m fairly certain my husband does too. We get certain thoughts and ideas in our head, and sometimes they are debilitating. Thank you for sharing what you learned from your therapist. I will try to put the 3 positives in motion.
Also, a funny note about that. A girlfriend of mine would always make me list 5 positives about myself when I’d say something negative. I dont know why i didnt apply that same concept to my thoughts.
I’m sorry to hear that Marly! It can be so scary! yes, try the replacement thoughts…it doesn’t work immediately, but if you are consistent it works! Let me know how it goes!
That is funny! Your friend knew what she was talking about!
You have explained it well Julie. I like how you have put your thoughts in words. Thank you for posting! Much love ❤️
Thank you! I appreciate you taking time to read!
I thought I was all alone in this. I have been struggling with terrible intrusive thoughts for the past 6 months and it brought me to rock bottom. One day a few months back I was scrolling through mental health quotes on Pinterest for encouragement and came across the one you posted, “Thoughts are just that, thoughts”. It immediately spoke to me and I began reading your posts and found out there was such a thing as intrusive thoughts. It led me to seek therapy and I was diagnosed with OCD. I just wanted to let you know that you are making a difference by sharing your story. I believe I would still be losing my mind in fear, self doubt, & shame without knowing what was really going on. It has given me much more hope for my life. Thank you!
OMG, I don’t know where to start. I am so happy to hear that you are feeling better, that you are seeing a therapist, and that you have your hope back! That is the quote that really helped me too! Intrusive thoughts are awful and scary, but once you start to understand and believe that just because you think something doesn’t mean you will do it/have done it/want to do it life can slowly start to get back to normal. Thank you so much for leaving a comment. You just made my day!!
Thank you Julie I have been tortured by intrusive thoughts and a feeling that something bad was about to happen. I think we mustn’t get too entrenched in our thoughts. I suffer from psychosis and feel that I cannot make sense of my world.
Heidi, I am so sorry you struggle with intrusive thoughts and anxiety! It can be incredibly overwhelming. Are you seeing a therapist of any kind? I went to a therapist for a bit and he really helped me get my mind back on the right track.
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