13-08-2022 05:46 PM
13-08-2022 05:46 PM
I'm struggling with my anxiety today because I made a mistake at work. I can't stop thinking about it and although I don't seem to be in any big trouble at the moment I'm anxious that something bad will happen. I've been trying to distract myself and trying to say positive things but nothing is helping. Im not sure how to stop going over it and feeling horrible. It's also triggering memories of any other time I've been in trouble and done something wrong, which is leading to some of the trauma memories I have coming back. Has anyone found anything to help get past all the worry and negative thoughts and feelings?
Peps
13-08-2022 06:31 PM
13-08-2022 06:31 PM
Hey there @peps . Sounds like the "thought stacking" phenomena is going on. I could be wrong but I'm seeing thoughts in a kind of stack-like formation.
I'm going to try apply my own lived experience and say a key spell-breaker of thought stacking is honest emotion. Pretty sure, one of the things happening, is the amygdala tries to speed up when it's better off slowing down. That way way it can clear the emotional inbox one emotion at a time.
For me that usually involves vocalizing. Sometimes in words but certainly not always.
13-08-2022 06:46 PM
13-08-2022 06:46 PM
Hey @peps sounds like it's a rough time for you right now. Can be so anxiety-inducing to feel like there's something really bad waiting for you when you get back to work! And then having other memories resurface as well, it's all quite a lot to be feeling hey. I'll list some stuff that has helped me in the past, maybe something will help.
I hope this helps. I'm happy to sit with you a bit too, if you wanna chat about anything 💜
13-08-2022 09:11 PM
13-08-2022 09:11 PM
Hi @peps !
For me, when traumatic thoughts pop up, I link it to something trivial so as to train my brain to associate the traumatic thought with something light.
The more the thought comes, the more I park a pink ice-cream mr whippy van in the middle of the thought. This then changes the direction of the initial thought.
this skill sounds really stupid, but with practice, it really comes in handy. I learnt it from my psychologist, but it was I who came up with the pink ice cream van. Your version of the ‘van’ might be different such a scene from a movie, a hug from someone, your pet.
Let me know if you decide to give it a go.
14-08-2022 07:52 PM
14-08-2022 07:52 PM
Hi @BPDSurvivor @Jynx @wellwellwellnez ,
Thank you for all the helpful ideas I have tried to use a few of them which has helped a little. @BPDSurvivor I used your ice cream van idea when I was anxiously on my way to work. I found it really helpful to just get a bit of relief from the thoughts for a minute. I'm still really anxious about the mistake I made but I'm trying to remind myself I didn't do it on purpose and I can learn from it. Hoping it gets better with time, hoping the trauma memories are going to reduce. I don't know why but I also seem to remember the negative experiences more than the positive.
Peps
14-08-2022 07:57 PM
14-08-2022 07:57 PM
I'm glad you tried the ice-cream van technique @peps . The more you do it, the more your brain learns that these thoughts are not threats.
As for having more negative than positive thoughts, it reminds us you are human! Through evolution has made us that way so as to survive. Without anxiety and these negative thoughts, we wouldn't survive and predators would soon take us away. Unfortunately, that part of evolution hasn't changed as we enter into the modern world - and hence can be problematic.
So really, everything you are experiencing is VERY normal.
19-08-2022 05:20 PM
19-08-2022 05:20 PM
19-08-2022 09:55 PM
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22-08-2022 10:23 PM
22-08-2022 10:23 PM
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