[Hope-Full]

Why do unwanted thoughts pop into my head when I don't want them to? More than that, these thoughts come in, seemingly out of the blue, and are rather startling as they are so not good thoughts.

Today I was putting an antibiotic cream on a scrape, when I had the insane thought "I wonder what would happen if I just ate the whole tube of medicine instead of putting it on the wound. Would that be seen as a S attempt?"

Now, will I act on something so foolish? Not a chance. Have I ever acted on something like that before? Nope.

I don't want to wait until next week when I see my T to ask... so if someone, anyone, could please tell me... why do those thoughts still come? Why do they seem to appear out of no where, out of the blue, and completely boggle me? How do I stop them from coming?

I can't answer any of those questions, but can say you're not alone. I have intense thoughts like that out of nowhere as well. One day last week I was boiling water to cook & out of nowhere I thought what If I just burn my arm on the eye of the stove. Now I wouldn't do anything that drastic either, but it doesn't stop crazy thoughts from appearing. Good thing we don't act on those types of thoughts. Stay safe & take care *hugs*

the important thing is that you were able to immediately identify this thought as dangerous and did not act on it. please give yourself a lot of credit of that!

there is no way to stop unwanted thoughts though sometimes discussing them with your T will help lessen them. you are doing a great job of identifying and not acting upon these problem thoughts. keep up the good work!

[unaluna]

**** TRIGGER ***

Yeah the kitchen can be a bad place for this. once my teenage nephew made a comment - same as a thought I had had in a dark moment - and it was just heartbreaking to have my fears confirmed that he was so unhappy and so helpless.

[dismantle.repair]

It's something called an "automatic thought"

like when your standing on the edge of a train platform and feel you could jump right this minute. But the feeling of afterwards when you haven't acted on that thought brings a charge of relief. Its a way of trying to master negative feelings we all carry inside. We know we're not actually going to eat the tube of cream, so underneath theres a secret joy we're afraid to feel. but why???

[ECHOES]

Do you think these thoughts may be a cry of pain?

Thinking about the thought, what do you think might have been the reason it came? What was it about? Was there something about looking at your hurt, attending to your hurt, that might have brought up some feelings such as wishing someone else was there to tend to your hurt and help your hurt? Suicidal thoughts are ways of saying "I hurt *this* much!"

Thoughts come for a reason. It's okay to be curious abut them.

[elliemay]

I have those too, think I always will. They aren't as disturbing to me anymore - more like "well, there goes that brain of mine again, thinking that crazy stuff".

Then it kinda just drifts away.

It still amazes me that I can think about something awful like that with the same emotion that I would attach to thinking "wow this soap really dries my skin in the winter", but it just seems that's the way it is for me.

[alwaysrejoice]

I have thoughts like that too. It is kinda disturbing, we just have to learn to dismiss them and move on.

Originally Posted by Hope-Full

why do those thoughts still come? Why do they seem to appear out of no where, out of the blue, and completely boggle me? How do I stop them from coming?

Someone told me once that our actions are what matter, not our thoughts. So, I might think "OMG, i just want to take every pill in the house" and instead walk outside and breathe the air...or instead continue what I was doing...or whatever. Did I take the pills? No. And the thought drifts away.

Like Elliemae, I think these thoughts will always pop into my head. For me, the key is not getting caught in them, wondering why I thought it, if I will do it, etc. I have the thought, think "what the heck?" and let it go and keep going.

Not sure if that's helpful, but you're not alone!

i think the unwanted thoughts are our subconsious mind speaking. our subconscious minds are busier than we realize they are! i think these thoughts are similar to dreams and nightmares. so maybe, it would be good to recognize them as "nightmare thoughts." we don't necessarily believe our nightmares and usually just shrug them off as merely scary. that's what you have to do with the scary unwanted thoughts. our ability to shrug them off shows that we are mentally healthy - something to actually rejoice about!

[SoupDragon]

I think these can be called unwanted intusive thoughts and can be linked to anxiety - so that our brain is playing out lots of worse case scenarios in our heads.

Mindfulness has helped me alot separate from this type of thought, sometimes I can get to a place where it is just like an annoyng insect walking about in my head and I take no notice. It is not always easy though - so I think holding on to the fact that these are unwanted thoughts for me is good and so it takes away the need / desire to act on them.

[Hope-Full]

Thanks for the reassurance SoFragile - glad to know I'm not alone.

unhappyguy - why is it that I can never seem to remember to recognize the little bits of good in these crappy situations? Thanks for reminding me that the fact that I identified and did not act is worth recognizing Interesting addition about the subsconscious mind... I know that I have ADHD, and my brain never stops, so I guess I could also be appreciative of the fact that at least these thoughts are not constant!

Hankster - I am so sorry you had to hear your nephew in this same situation. It is hard enough to feel it myself, can't imagine hearing this from a loved one.

dismantle - what do you mean by "automatic thought"?

earthmamma- I totally know what you mean. As my feelings seem to be escaping more lately, I can see how I'm afraid to feel that joy or good feelings...

echoes... the amount of emotional pain I am in and have been in for the last two weeks has skyrocketed and it's excruciating. My eyes are constantly burning from the amount of tears escaping. I think the thought just made things worse because it scared me - there's only so much I can handle, and I feel pretty overwhelmed. But what confused me is that there is no way in hell I'd ever act on su thoughts, so why do they then have to come up?

Elliemay - interesting how you equate it to a more mundane thought. I like the idea of dismissing it the same way I dismiss an annoying commercial

Thanks for reminding me I'm not alone alwaysrejoice.

Tree - my T reminds me of that All. The. Time. That what I think is just a thought - what I act upon is what matters. I think I'm just in such a place where these thoughts are especially frightening, even though I know I won't act.

Soup - my anxiety has been really high lately, so I guess this makes sense. I'm not sure I get the concept mindfullness? Is that like meditation and stuff?

Overwhelmingly it sounds as if these are rather typical thoughts tht many have, it's the lack of acting on them that is important. I hope to get to the place where I can just watch them drift by and pay them little attention ....

[SoupDragon]

http://www.bemindfulonline.com/

please also take into consideration that if you are suffering from anxiety then any bad thought will upset you more than usual.

i suffer from anxiety also. it's amazing that i will be afraid to go out of my apartment and, when i do, none of the things i was visualizing or fearing happen!

intrusive thoughts might also signal PTSD. please discuss them with a T if necessary. sometimes mediation may help, one of its actions is not to get involved with negative thoughts. instead, recognize they are just a thought and let them pass. eventually, provided there is no other problem, the intrusive unwanted thoughts may go away on their own. i am so glad you are able to recognize them for what they are!

[elliemay]

Originally Posted by Hope-Full

Thanks for the reassurance SoFragile - glad to know I'm not alone.

unhappyguy - why is it that I can never seem to remember to recognize the little bits of good in these crappy situations? Thanks for reminding me that the fact that I identified and did not act is worth recognizing Interesting addition about the subsconscious mind... I know that I have ADHD, and my brain never stops, so I guess I could also be appreciative of the fact that at least these thoughts are not constant!

Hankster - I am so sorry you had to hear your nephew in this same situation. It is hard enough to feel it myself, can't imagine hearing this from a loved one.

dismantle - what do you mean by "automatic thought"?

earthmamma- I totally know what you mean. As my feelings seem to be escaping more lately, I can see how I'm afraid to feel that joy or good feelings...

echoes... the amount of emotional pain I am in and have been in for the last two weeks has skyrocketed and it's excruciating. My eyes are constantly burning from the amount of tears escaping. I think the thought just made things worse because it scared me - there's only so much I can handle, and I feel pretty overwhelmed. But what confused me is that there is no way in hell I'd ever act on su thoughts, so why do they then have to come up?

Elliemay - interesting how you equate it to a more mundane thought. I like the idea of dismissing it the same way I dismiss an annoying commercial

Thanks for reminding me I'm not alone alwaysrejoice.

Tree - my T reminds me of that All. The. Time. That what I think is just a thought - what I act upon is what matters. I think I'm just in such a place where these thoughts are especially frightening, even though I know I won't act.

Soup - my anxiety has been really high lately, so I guess this makes sense. I'm not sure I get the concept mindfullness? Is that like meditation and stuff?

Overwhelmingly it sounds as if these are rather typical thoughts tht many have, it's the lack of acting on them that is important. I hope to get to the place where I can just watch them drift by and pay them little attention ....

I definitely think you will find that the less power you give these thoughts the more mundane they become.

[lastyearisblank]

Yeah and may I suggest just changing the environment when you get them. As unhappyguy suggested it is a sign of mental health to be able to step back. When I get nightmares, I turn on all the lights,make sure to get something to eat, maybe watch tv for a bit. Maybe it's childish but it feels empowering to say, yes, I CHOOSE to keep the lights on. Maybe you can do something nice for yourself when you get these thoughts, just to remind yourself.. these darn thoughts are getting in the way, but they are not the boss of me.