What are Intrusive Thoughts?
Intrusive thoughts are unwelcome thoughts or flashbacks that repeatedly find their way into a person’s thinking. In either case, a person dealing with intrusive thoughts who is unable to get them out of his or her mind should seek the help of a medical professional. If left untreated, intrusive thoughts can cause a great deal of emotional, mental, and physical stress.
Intrusive thoughts in the form of flashbacks are memories of past experiences. A person coping with intrusive thoughts in this fashion may force herself to relive the memory, no matter how disturbing it may be. A person who was molested, for example, may experience intrusive thoughts in the form of flashbacks. Some people become consumed by these flashbacks for several days, reliving the entire event. Others experience only bits and pieces of these flashbacks at a time.
In some cases, individuals experiencing flashbacks may reverse the roles in the situation. Using the molestation example, the person who was molested may see himself as the person doing the molestation rather than as the victim. Others may experience the flashback as if they are a third person watching as it takes place. This is often because the situation was so traumatic or frightening that the person cannot experience the flashback in first person.
Intrusive thoughts in the form of unwanted thoughts are common in all people. Some individuals with certain psychological disorders, however, are not capable of dismissing such intrusive thoughts. This is particularly true of those with post traumatic stress disorder or obsessive compulsive disorder. Rather than pushing the intrusive thoughts from their mind, these individuals become focused on them.
For individuals suffering from psychological disorders, intrusive thoughts occur automatically and frequently. Usually, they are distressing, upsetting, or disturbing in some way. Examples of intrusive thoughts of this type are thinking about killing someone, thinking about driving off a bridge, and thinking about suicide. Individuals with psychological disorders may act upon these intrusive thoughts because they are unable to dismiss them, or they may obsess over their fear of following through with these intrusive thoughts.
Written by Shannon Kietzman
