Intrusive thoughts

[Template88]

Do you have intrusive thoughts? You know, those thoughts that seemingly come out of nowhere and suggest you do stuff that is clearly against your better interest?

The most common one people admit to is the thought to jump off a high place to kill yourself.

Some people describe them as coming from "the void" but I think its just some childlike presence in your mind that drives impulsive decisions. What's interesting to me about it though is that these commands and thoughts are always negative either in intent or from the consequences of following them. Why dont we have good impulsive thoughts?

For example, the most benign command might be "eat this entire pizza" to "lets have sex with this person right now!" to "KILL THEM, KILL THEM NOW" or "You should drive into a wall going as fast as possible, with your family in the car, it will be funny."

It'd be pretty funny if most of you claimed you didnt have these, but I also wouldnt believe you. Any intrusive thoughts you want to admit to?

[vater-roboter]

Have them all the time. They suck ass, and cause me much distress. It doesn't matter. I'll give in one of these days.

[Template88]

At 7/16/22 09:26 PM, vater-roboter wrote: Have them all the time. They suck ass, and cause me much distress. It doesn't matter. I'll give in one of these days.

I think it helps to accept that they're real and that they're coming from you, but from a completely illogical fragment of your psyche. I think talking about them helps, and knowing that other people have them should comfort you. You should only be worried if you can literally hear these commands out loud, or they never stop repeating themselves.

Personally, I am mostly disgusted by mine. The things that voice wants are quite crude, but I accept them as part of me. It helps.

[AnEvilHeat]

joke answer:

genuine answer:

never personally had those jump intrusive thoughts cause i dont go out to place like buildings or cliffs or go to much places to begin with. there were sometimes where i had thoughts of me attacking my family cause of anger issues, it got to the point where i slapped one of my sister and i regretted it almost instantly. i still have it here and there but i accept that i have them and make myself self aware and sure to not make those thoughts into a reality.

[vater-roboter]

At 7/16/22 09:28 PM, Template88 wrote:

At 7/16/22 09:26 PM, vater-roboter wrote: Have them all the time. They suck ass, and cause me much distress. It doesn't matter. I'll give in one of these days.

I think it helps to accept that they're real and that they're coming from you, but from a completely illogical fragment of your psyche. I think talking about them helps, and knowing that other people have them should comfort you. You should only be worried if you can literally hear these commands out loud, or they never stop repeating themselves.

Personally, I am mostly disgusted by mine. The things that voice wants are quite crude, but I accept them as part of me. It helps.

I'd rather just get that part of my brain removed, as long as I can be of some use to someone after. Like actually take that piece out, any shady docs that might be lurking.

[Template88]

At 7/16/22 09:39 PM, AnEvilHeat wrote: joke answer:

genuine answer:
never personally had those jump intrusive thoughts cause i dont go out to place like buildings or cliffs or go to much places to begin with. there were sometimes where i had thoughts of me attacking my family cause of anger issues, it got to the point where i slapped one of my sister and i regretted it almost instantly. i still have it here and there but i accept that i have them and make myself self aware and sure to not make those thoughts into a reality.

Rage is one of the few times that reason just completely gets thrown out of the thinking process, and its pronounced enough that even the way laws are written accounts for sudden rage being a mitigating factor.

When you let yourself go to pure impulse...do you think you're even a person anymore? People lose their entire lives to a few seconds of impulse every day, all the time, im glad in your case nothing irreversible happened.

What purpose does rage serve? Anger I understand, rage is something else entirely.

[AnEvilHeat]

At 7/16/22 09:51 PM, Template88 wrote:

At 7/16/22 09:39 PM, AnEvilHeat wrote: joke answer:

genuine answer:
never personally had those jump intrusive thoughts cause i dont go out to place like buildings or cliffs or go to much places to begin with. there were sometimes where i had thoughts of me attacking my family cause of anger issues, it got to the point where i slapped one of my sister and i regretted it almost instantly. i still have it here and there but i accept that i have them and make myself self aware and sure to not make those thoughts into a reality.

Rage is one of the few times that reason just completely gets thrown out of the thinking process, and its pronounced enough that even the way laws are written accounts for sudden rage being a mitigating factor.

When you let yourself go to pure impulse...do you think you're even a person anymore? People lose their entire lives to a few seconds of impulse every day, all the time, im glad in your case nothing irreversible happened.

What purpose does rage serve? Anger I understand, rage is something else entirely.

i barely feel like a person when i rage. rage really only serves the purpose of showcasing what anger can possibly be used for, a warning really.

[Boss]

I used to have very constant paranoia intrusive thoughts when i was younger which i guess is pretty great monkey brain for survival and find food. They ended up going away as i matured

[Template88]

At 7/16/22 10:21 PM, Boss wrote: I used to have very constant paranoia intrusive thoughts when i was younger which i guess is pretty great monkey brain for survival and find food. They ended up going away as i matured

What specifically was the thought? That something was watching you? Or that you were being followed?

[SatanBrain]

It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.

[SolidAirgasm]

I still get intrusive thoughts, but they're easier to control now. There are those common "I wanna fuck that girl" ones, but it sometimes can never go away.

Now every time i see this girl, my brain goes: "Hey, remember this girl you wanna fuck?"

Those ones really bothers me.

Even when the situation is random and unrelated, those thoughts still occur.

[Template88]

At 7/17/22 02:32 AM, SolidAirbendz wrote: I still get intrusive thoughts, but they're easier to control now. There are those common "I wanna fuck that girl" ones, but it sometimes can never go away.
Now every time i see this girl, my brain goes: "Hey, remember this girl you wanna fuck?"
Those ones really bothers me.
Even when the situation is random and unrelated, those thoughts still occur.

I can relate in that my intrusive thoughts are of a sexual nature...which is made worse by being ace, so they're double disgusting and alien feeling. I feel like a lot of the crassness of the stereotypical "bro" objectifying is just speaking those thoughts aloud mindlessly.

haha what PAIR OF TITS HAHA RIGHT GUYS

yeah bro i want to be INSIDE THAT YEAAAH

[SolidAirgasm]

At 7/17/22 02:37 AM, Template88 wrote:

At 7/17/22 02:32 AM, SolidAirbendz wrote: I still get intrusive thoughts, but they're easier to control now. There are those common "I wanna fuck that girl" ones, but it sometimes can never go away.
Now every time i see this girl, my brain goes: "Hey, remember this girl you wanna fuck?"
Those ones really bothers me.
Even when the situation is random and unrelated, those thoughts still occur.

I can relate in that my intrusive thoughts are of a sexual nature...which is made worse by being ace, so they're double disgusting and alien feeling. I feel like a lot of the crassness of the stereotypical "bro" objectifying is just speaking those thoughts aloud mindlessly.

haha what PAIR OF TITS HAHA RIGHT GUYS

yeah bro i want to be INSIDE THAT YEAAAH

Yeah exactly!

But i think it's okay to joke about it sometimes, to ease it a little, but it does often come out feeling untrue.

It's a pretty gray area.

[ShayInator]

As someone with severe OCD, intrusive thoughts are a huge part of my everyday. While other people see them as a small inconvenience and brush or laugh them off, someone with OCD sees them as maybe a sign they are a bad person so you analyze them to reassure yourself you're not bad. The problem is the thought comes back again but this time stronger and usually about things you really care about. You get in a cycle of analyzing and then having more thoughts, which convinces you that you really ARE a bad person. Intrusive thoughts are terrible and after a while you avoid anything that will maybe trigger an intrusive thought, or avoid people because you're convinced you're a bad person and want to protect them. You live like a hermit feeling super depressed and the cycle continues lol

[Template88]

At 7/17/22 04:28 AM, ShayInator wrote: As someone with severe OCD, intrusive thoughts are a huge part of my everyday. While other people see them as a small inconvenience and brush or laugh them off, someone with OCD sees them as maybe a sign they are a bad person so you analyze them to reassure yourself you're not bad. The problem is the thought comes back again but this time stronger and usually about things you really care about. You get in a cycle of analyzing and then having more thoughts, which convinces you that you really ARE a bad person. Intrusive thoughts are terrible and after a while you avoid anything that will maybe trigger an intrusive thought, or avoid people because you're convinced you're a bad person and want to protect them. You live like a hermit feeling super depressed and the cycle continues lol

I seriously doubt this will help you but because I accept that these intrusive thoughts come from me (as they must) I must also accept that I have been molded into a "bad" person to have generated them. From that point you have two options: you can accept that you are a bad person or you can push the responsibility away from yourself and onto either society around you or just the state of simply being human at this time. After all, everything you are is simply a reflection of the world around you....and unless you think you have some agency to control the world around you, you couldnt possibly claim responsibility for how "good" or "evil" you are right?

but of course such logic is easier to accept when you dont believe in free will to begin with eh? and thats a rather debatable topic. anyways, thanks for the input, dont be so hard on yourself.

[COOLZONE17500]

I have them all the time but i just ignore them and go on with my day

[SuperBastard]

I think that comic puts it really well actually; I always figured it was a "what if the current situation was extremely different" kinda thing. That's not to say all of them are though. There's a whole spectrum, mostly ranging from complex social situations to very inwardly personal ones.

[Galneda]

Seldom are they thoughts of self destruction, but rather depictions of incredible violence.

Entire scenarios could play out in my head and how shit could hit the fan in the absolute worst way which make me look for exits, cover, and potential weapons.

Oftentimes I just write it off as catastrophe strategizing, but I know it's my imagination running amock and I allow it. These are muscles that need to be stretched, and it could save a life someday. That life might be my own.

[DamnedByFate]

At 7/16/22 09:21 PM, Template88 wrote: Do you have intrusive thoughts? You know, those thoughts that seemingly come out of nowhere and suggest you do stuff that is clearly against your better interest?

The most common one people admit to is the thought to jump off a high place to kill yourself.

That's not out of nowhere, nor is it against your better interest. The world really does suck.

[Template88]

At 7/17/22 06:38 AM, Phobotech wrote: Seldom are they thoughts of self destruction, but rather depictions of incredible violence.

Entire scenarios could play out in my head and how shit could hit the fan in the absolute worst way which make me look for exits, cover, and potential weapons.

Oftentimes I just write it off as catastrophe strategizing, but I know it's my imagination running amock and I allow it. These are muscles that need to be stretched, and it could save a life someday. That life might be my own.

Though they are rooted in anxiety and fear....perhaps this sort of thing could break the mold and be considered a "good" intrusive thought? I do this too....hard not to...in the US....

Unfortunately for us I think though, if our "enemy" is capable at all, he would already have plans set in motion against us in advance covering all our escape routes...and our wariness would do little to help in a functional capacity. Perhaps it is a form of self comfort?

[Galneda]

At 7/17/22 06:49 AM, Template88 wrote:
Though they are rooted in anxiety and fear....perhaps this sort of thing could break the mold and be considered a "good" intrusive thought? I do this too....hard not to...in the US....

Preperation is a positive spin on passive pessimism, but preperation is practically paltry without proper training.

Unfortunately for us I think though, if our "enemy" is capable at all, he would already have plans set in motion against us in advance covering all our escape routes...and our wariness would do little to help in a functional capacity. Perhaps it is a form of self comfort?

They're human- there's bound to be oversights.

Consider additionally that our most likely enemy would be a lone gunman or a small group of coordinated shooters. They're hardly masterminds, and they're counting on chaotic hysteria. When they've encountered resistance that possess a clear mind and a contingency plan for exactly them, it's a ticking clock until they're silenced.

Train to act swiftly in the direction of the threat. Train to disarm. Train to help others survive and escape, because the common person WILL lock up with fear. They'll freeze, they'll devolve into hysterics, they'll act irrationally or make themselves a target. You could be the difference between their survival or death, because we cannot rely on the police. The gun problem will persist for generations. We must train to protect our own.

[AudioMachina22]

Bare feet

cuz I always wear socks. additonaly (if you want to know) I have a pair of nike and another from rieker.

[WaffleCrisp]

I get the jump idea a lot when I am passing bridges, the thought has an attitude of "haha I dare you." Also walking into traffic. The thought will be "jump into the middle of the busy road and see if the car stops in time."

[RiverwithanA]

I never really did until a year or so back when a very disturbing thought crossed my mind, and I just couldn't shake it. Couldn't for the life of me fathom what would spark such a dark headspace. That one experience would send me down this spiral of figuring out what the fuck was wrong with me. Took me a while to figure out that it was literally just what's known as an "intrusive thought" and they happen to be extremely common, lol.

It's wild looking back at that time and seeing how I made a mountain out of a molehill. It really scared the fuck out of me though. Just goes to show the more you overthink/stress over something before taking a step back and calming down, the worse it gets.

[metalsonic655]

I guess I can't know for sure, but I feel like everybody experiences intrusive thoughts once in awhile. For me, the most common one is when I'm riding in a car and am holding something. I'll think, "hahaha throw it out the window." I've never done it and never will do it, but the thought is there. There have been more extreme thoughts, but I accept them all for what they are. They're nothing more than brief notions that slip through your mind, things a sane mind humors but would never actually act upon. Nothing to really get worried about.

Anyway,

[OnixDark]

i sometimes imagine myself violently beating someone i'm talking to and i'm like "WTF is wrong with me?"

[Boss]

At 7/16/22 10:31 PM, Template88 wrote:

At 7/16/22 10:21 PM, Boss wrote: I used to have very constant paranoia intrusive thoughts when i was younger which i guess is pretty great monkey brain for survival and find food. They ended up going away as i matured

What specifically was the thought? That something was watching you? Or that you were being followed?

Combinations of tons of stuff, thinking things were wrong with me, people were out to get me, gang stalking, maybe more creepy monster stuff in the dark as a kid or tween especially when creepypastas exacerbated it, even existential horror type stuff like the entire world is a truman show or that the universe is a hell or other people are demons, pretty fucked but in the end you just need jesus (jk lmfao)

i guess the fact that it was random and chaotic maybe made it easier to grow out of it. Im not sure what it would be like to have a single recurring fixation thought, i guess ive never had recurring dreams either

[SecretBoxFox]

I get them a lot, they usually involve impaling myself, amputating my limbs, or other creative ways of hurting myself. I think it’s my brain getting back at me for being so terrible in social situations

[Gimmick]

i used to have intrusive thoughts in the past as well, but thankfully they've all but disappeared these days. one that i remember is when i was riding in a car, the idea of opening the door while traveling at high speed was both intriguing and unsettling. i think i read something about them being a mechanism to alert you to your surroundings. like how seeing a pit and thinking "jump" is making you aware theres a pit so you don't accidentally fall down

can't be accidental if it's intentional *taps forehead*

supposedly intrusive thoughts become worse when you don't get enough sleep. so i reckon we're all fucked

[phlog]

sometimes ill be chilling in a public place and think "it would totally be funny if a huge bus just rammed into all these people". and i know that that's obviously awfully tragic, and i shouldn't genuinely wish that on those people. and i look even more crazy when i actually laugh at the idea out loud, almost like im laughing at an old joke someone told. im not sure if thats considered intrusive thoughts tho.