Obsessive thoughts: why they appear and how to fight them
Our ability to think in a sophisticated way and based on abstract concepts is what distinguishes us from animals. However, this quality has not only brought us advantages. With the possibility of thinking, new problems have also arrived; uncomfortable situations that other species do not have to face. Obsessive thoughts are an example of this.
In this article we will see what to do with the appearance of these obsessive thoughts and why they appear.
- Related article: "The 9 types of thought and their characteristics"
The appearance of obsessive thoughts
Why is it that, at certain stages of our lives, certain ideas or mental images emerge again and again to our consciousness ? After all, it is paradoxical that we think of consciousness as the "control center" of our body and that, at the same time, there are unconscious mental processes capable of imposing themselves over and over again on that supposed authority. And is that as much as we want, we can not "force" directly that obsessive thoughts do not appear.
The truth is that the ins and outs of psychological processes are not yet known in depth, but we do know something about which there is already a lot of evidence: emotional memory is as much or more important than memory based on words, concepts.
When we live something that marks us, whether related to experiences related to the environment or thoughts, that leaves different types of traces in our brain: on the one hand, the very narration of what is happening, what can be explained speaking. On the other hand, the sensations and emotions that experience leaves us ; for example, fear, joy, etc.
Obsessive thoughts appear again and again in our consciousness, among other reasons, because their emotional charge is relatively high and, in addition, is associated with habitual experiences in our day to day. For example, if these mental images have to do with family discussions, seeing other families, products for family consumption or even the word "dad" written on a billboard can make it come back to us.
- Maybe you're interested: "Emotional memory: what is it and what is its biological basis?"
What to do to manage them?
Here are some tips for dealing with obsessive thoughts. However, you should bear in mind that in the most serious cases it is necessary go to personalized psychological therapy services , since following guidelines individually and without help and professional advice will not work.
1. Do not try not to think about that
Trying to "force" the forgetting of obsessive thoughts simply does not work. The urge to stop thinking about that it brings us to a state of stress and alertness that just gets the opposite effect, given that whatever we feel we will associate it with that image that we intend to quarantine.
The best, then, is to opt for other strategies that have nothing to do with denial, but rather with acceptance.
2. Change of habits
It may seem counterintuitive, but the key to preventing obsessive thoughts from becoming a constant source of discomfort has nothing to do with "working the internal aspects of our mind", but rather the opposite: making changes outward, in our way to relate to the world and to others.
Therefore, it is good to radically change habits and routines, in all aspects. To frequent different places, to look for other contexts in which to interact with others and, in short, submit to new stimuli.
What do you get with this? Faced with this flood of new sensations and experiences, the obsessive thoughts are diluted, since there are many elements in which to fix our attention and which we will unconsciously try to memorize because of their emotional nature.
3. Focus on a new and exciting project
Having new goals in life makes the mental associations that we make in our day to day are linked to what we give importance at that time. If there is something that, for our focus of attention, competes in importance with obsessive thoughts, it is more likely that these will lose strength little by little.
As well as what keeps us excited is a true magnet for our attention focus , the obsessive thoughts are disappearing, something that is noticeable in the frequency with which they come to our mind: from more to less, until evaporating.
4. Practice relaxation techniques
It is good to combine the previous steps with relaxation techniques, since anxiety itself leads us to think about what obsesses us.
- Related article: "6 easy relaxation techniques to combat stress"
