Do you experience odd or disturbing thoughts in your mind? Or do you experience full-blown panic that you later discover was unfounded?
It is normal to experience an occasional disturbing thought that you can let pass as just a thought from time to time. The thoughts are known as intrusive thoughts, which can happen without you noticing them. The challenge is when the intrusive thoughts graduate to become obsessive thoughts.
If you have obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), you may experience intrusive thoughts to the extent that can affect your well-being. Are you struggling with how to stop obsessive thoughts? You are not alone.
Understanding how obsessive thinking works and what causes it will help a lot in helping you cope.
Hypnosis Downloads
If you feel plagued by worrying ideas and thoughts, hypnotherapy is an excellent idea of helping you. It is a perfect option for dealing with the negative thoughts in your head that make you feel terrible.
Hypnosis Downloads offers the Stop Obsessive Thoughts audio session that you can use to hypnotize someone or yourself and eliminate negative thoughts. The audio session is the work of an experienced team of psychologists and hypnotherapists, making it effective.
As you listen to the hypnosis audio, you change your life by:
- Helping you understand how the negative thoughts work
- Getting you detached from the thoughts
- Teaching you how to calm down
- Enabling you to see clearly without the negative thoughts
What Is OCD?
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder refers to mental illness or generalized anxiety disorder that results in unwanted sensations, known as obsessions. It can also cause the urge to do a thing repeatedly. The urge is referred to as compulsions. People can experience both compulsions and obsessions.
OCD doesn’t refer to negative habits such as nail-biting, negative thinking, or other anxiety disorders. A compulsive habit can include the need to wash your hands over and over again after touching something dirty. Although you may not be willing to do it, you find yourself powerless to stop it.
People with obsessive thoughts have thoughts or actions that:
- Are beyond one’s control
- Aren’t enjoyable
- Take up at least an hour of their time a day
- Interfere with various aspects of life such as work, social life, other parts of life
Types of OCD
There are various types of OCD, but you can put them in four categories:
- Contamination: a compulsion to clean and being afraid of things that can be dirty
- Symmetry and order: the person may have intense feelings of having the need to have your things arranged in a particular way
- Checking things such as ovens, light switches, alarm systems, locks, and having a medical condition such as schizophrenia or pregnancy
Compulsions and Obsessions
Many people who struggle with OCD know that their negative feelings, habits, and thoughts don’t make much sense. They don’t do the things because they want to, but it’s because they are not able to stop them. If they try to stop, they feel so terrible about it that they start again.
Behavioral compulsions refer to behaviors and actions in an attempt to alleviate the distressing thoughts in one’s mind. Mental compulsions can affect your mental health. The person thinks that if they don’t analyze a thought enough, it can become a reality. Thinking about such thoughts can be an attempt to neutralize negative thoughts.
Examples of obsessive thoughts include:
- Awareness of breathing, blinking, and other sensations
- Suspecting that your partner is cheating on you, even without a reason to believe it
- Constant worries about you or any other person getting hurt
On the other hand, compulsive habits can include:
- Fear of using public toilets, shaking hands, or touching doorknobs
- The need to count things such as bottles and steps
- Carrying out tasks in a particular order or for a specific number of times
Causes of Obsessive Thinking and the Risk Factors
Doctors and medical practitioners aren’t sure what causes obsessive-compulsive disorder, but stress can enhance the symptoms. OCD is more prevalent in men than in women, and you can also see the symptoms appear in teens.
Some of the risk factors of OCD include:
- A parent, child, or sibling with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
- Some differences in particular parts of the brain
- Anxiety or depression
- Trauma experiences
- A history of abuse, including sexual and physical abuse
A child can also get a medical condition after a streptococcal infection.
OCD diagnosis can include blood tests and physical exams to ensure the symptoms do not result from anything else. The doctor can also talk about your thoughts, feelings, and habits.
How Can I Stop Obsessive Thoughts?
OCD thoughts can make it difficult for you to function at your place of work, home, or school. If you cannot get rid of the obsessive thought, you can consider getting help from your doctor, clinical psychologist, mental health professional, or using hypnosis or self-hypnosis.
Additionally, there are various OCD treatment options you can consider, including:
Medication
People with OCD can take various medications to help in managing the symptoms. They can take anti-anxiety medications, anti-depressants, or other medications meant for other mental health conditions. Your doctor will provide medical advice on the best types of medications to help you deal with the issue.
Some people can also use natural and herbal supplements to help manage their symptoms. It may not be safe to use the supplements with prescription medications. On a related note, see also if self-hypnosis is regarded as safe.
Therapy
Therapy can also come in handy in helping a person with OCD to manage the negative thoughts. The most common type of therapy used is cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), using an approach known as exposure therapy.
They are treated using an approach known as exposure and response prevention therapy (ERP). The therapist will help you work with your obsessive thoughts and associated compulsions. Your therapist can use various techniques, including role-playing situations that distress you. Although it might seem overwhelming, exposure work is done with a lot of support, and it is gradual and slow.
Mindfulness Exercises
If you are struggling with obsessive thoughts, mindfulness exercises can help you deal with your mental health condition. The mindfulness techniques may be part of your therapy, but you can also try them out on your own.
The exercises also help you discover that your obsessive thoughts are due to mistakes in the past or worries about the future. The techniques will help you focus on what you can see, smell, taste, and feel. You’ll come to realize that your obsessive thoughts are not rooted in reality, and you can start enjoying the present moment.
Enhance Your Self-awareness
Before you can change any behavior, you should be conscious of it when it is developing. In other words, you need to identify your patterns before you can change them. If you are stuck in a particular conscious loop, you engage in a particular well-established habit. It is similar to other unconscious habits such as checking social media after a short while or biting nails.
The next time you find yourself having obsessive thoughts, think, “Stop!” You can even say it loud or in your mind to help you stop the negative thoughts cycle. You can even visualize throwing the negative thought in a trash can to get rid of it.
Name the Issue
When you are struggling with obsessive thinking, there is an underlying fear that something terrible will happen. You may be obsessing about an incomplete conversation with your partner, not living the life you wanted, a fight with your friend, or a mistake you made at work.
Whatever issue is causing you to struggle with obsessive thoughts, try to name it and put it in a sentence. For instance, “I know I made a mistake at work and I am afraid I will lose my job.” Or, “My friend treated me badly and I am angry at him.” By identifying the real situation, you can deal with your deepest worries and fears. You are more ready to deal with the worst that can happen.
Come Up With a Worry Break
You can deal with your obsessive thinking by scheduling a worry break. The short period you allow yourself to worry will help you develop better boundaries. During the worry break, you can write down everything you are worried about.
After that, you can try and resist all attempts to engage in obsessive thoughts. For instance, if the obsessive thoughts come when it is time to sleep, you can say, “I am going to sleep because there is nothing I can solve right now. I’ll think about the issue tomorrow.”
Infuse Positive Changes in Your Daily Routine
You can also deal with obsessive thoughts by infusing some positive ideas into your routine. If you fill your daily routine with positive vibes and ideas, it is unlikely you’ll have time for any negative thoughts. It would be best to have a lifestyle change to help you feel good and eventually develop into a consistent habit.
Some of the positive changes you can make to your life include:
- Developing a healthy eating habit
- Taking walks along the park
- Physical exercises
If you start struggling with some intrusive thoughts at the beginning of the day, try the positive ideas to get rid of the thoughts.
Conclusion
Do you find yourself struggling with obsessive thoughts? Obsessive thoughts can negatively affect your life, including social life, work, school, etc. Obsessive thoughts can result from various causes, including past sexual or physical abuse, post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression, etc. It will be best to find a solution to help deal with the negative thoughts. For instance, you can take prescription medicines, use therapy, develop positive ideas, practice self-awareness, and mindfulness, etc.