Thanks for sharing! I used to have intrusive thoughts and was prone to ruminating, but I managed to overcome it. It was a years-long process, and I relied heavily on visualizations. My favorite was to take the invasive thought, mentally place it onto a cutting board, and chop it to bits. Each time the thought came back, I visually sliced it up — over and over and over, as often as needed. Gradually, those thoughts decreased. I also used a lot of mantras and subtle cues to push my brain down a different path. For example, I wore a watch with the word “present” next to the current time, which was the only part of the watch face that was covered. Past and future were blocked. Plus, I was fortunate to be able to see a psychologist.
I know it’s super hard! It’s like you are on a sled going down a snowy hill, and it’s been down the same path hundreds of times, so the tracks laid are very deep. You can see other paths and know where you want to be, but the sled seems tied to its old tracks.
Thanks for sharing! I used to have intrusive thoughts and was prone to ruminating, but I managed to overcome it. It was a years-long process, and I relied heavily on visualizations. My favorite was to take the invasive thought, mentally place it onto a cutting board, and chop it to bits. Each time the thought came back, I visually sliced it up — over and over and over, as often as needed. Gradually, those thoughts decreased. I also used a lot of mantras and subtle cues to push my brain down a different path. For example, I wore a watch with the word “present” next to the current time, which was the only part of the watch face that was covered. Past and future were blocked. Plus, I was fortunate to be able to see a psychologist.
I know it’s super hard! It’s like you are on a sled going down a snowy hill, and it’s been down the same path hundreds of times, so the tracks laid are very deep. You can see other paths and know where you want to be, but the sled seems tied to its old tracks.