[nueff]

I don't know how to categorize this because I've never heard of it. This has gone on for 25 years or more. It mostly happens when I am waking up in the morning and not really dreaming, but just letting my mind wander. It happens mostly then, but can happen at any time of the day or night if I happen to be daydreaming. Here goes:

If I daydream or picture myself in ANY situation, there will be immediate danger involved. I could imagine myself standing on the sidewalk and immediately the cement could go out from under me and I fall into the ground. I could imagine myself running a power saw and immediately I thrust my hand into the blade. I made those two examples up, because at this time I can't even think of a good example. However, when it happens, it is immediate, quick, completely out of my control and persistent. In my slumber or even awake, I will jolt myself out of the situation. I have even found myself saying STOP to myself. It snaps me out of it for the moment. I have gone so far as to tell myself, this is only my imagination and in my daydream or slumber, go ahead and stick my hand in the saw. Nothing happens of course, it's just my imagination, and it's almost like it takes the power away from whatever is causing this. if I do "stick my hand in the saw" or jump off the building, or allow myself to be sucked down into a crevasse, I don't feel happy or sad, just resigned to the thought that, "okay, brain, you won, now leave me alone".

I don't have a history of mental health issues and I feel like I'm about as mentally healthy as the next guy. I am not a drug user and I haven't had alcohol in almost 20 years (personal decision). The only medicine I take is a beta blocker. I do drink a lot of coffee but I'm trying to roll that back in the afternoon because it does affect my sleep. I'm happily married and financially stable. If I believed in demons, I'd say it was a demon pushing me into these situations....but I don't believe in demons.

This is not a problem that is affecting my daily life, I just don't know why these racing thoughts keep happening.

[Skeezyks]

Hello nueff: Thank you for bringing your concern here to PC. I see this is your first post. Welcome to Psych Central.

Unfortunately I would not know what to suggest to you with regard to what you are experiencing. Perhaps there will be other PC members who will have had some similar experiences they can share. I experienced episodes of sleep paralysis for many years (not so much anymore.) But I don't know if there might be any relationship between what you're experiencing & what I've experienced. I suspect it might take a sleep specialist to figure out what's actually going on.

Anyway... thanks for sharing these interesting experiences. I hope you find PC to be of benefit.

[will19]

I think this is called "Catastrophic Thinking". I have it myself. It's mostly about my health. I have "health anxiety". Things are going fairly well for me for now and it's been that way for a while. But I keep thinking that there's got to be something or an event in the future to dread. There are times when something in the unknown future that I should dread nags at me. I guess I know why that happens. I hate it.

It helps me to keep busy. But there are times when I have idle time and that's when those thoughts come. I try to find something to do but then I can't, so I feel kind of stuck.

I have no suggestions or advice for you. Just saying that it happens to me.

[*Beth*]

Ugh. I've had that kind of experience for many, many years. In my experience, it is a mental health issue. The experience is anxiety, but whether it's "just" anxiety, or whether it's anxiety accompanying another mental health condition is something a psychiatrist would determine. There are medications to treat the problem, and therapy - or both.

It would be a great idea for you to speak with a mental health professional, rather than continue to suffer with such anxious imaginings.