Have you ever wondered about how to deal with intrusive thoughts and prevent them from becoming an overwhelming part of your life? So many of us often struggle with intrusive thoughts, which are often caused by anxiety. If this is something you have been burdened with, it can seem difficult and scary to try and overcome them. However, this isn’t wholly the case, and there are plenty of ways you can overcome and deal with intrusive thoughts
The Link Between Intrusive Thoughts, Anxiety, and Depression
Before you can begin your process of learning how to deal with intrusive thoughts, it’s crucial to understand why they appear. Of course, we all have different life experiences, which will impact how we view the world around us. However, intrusive thoughts, anxiety, and depression may be linked in many cases.
How Hormonal Changes Can Trigger Intrusive Thoughts
If you don’t think your intrusive thoughts are triggered by anxiety, you might instead be looking at hormonal causes. Indeed, hormone imbalances can increase your likelihood of experiencing intrusive thoughts. As such, this is especially common for women (who regularly experience hormone fluctuations throughout the month).
The Different Types of Intrusive Thoughts
You should always consider the different types of intrusive thoughts before looking at the different ways to stop them. Indeed, this can help you understand the cause of how you’ve been feeling a little more easily. As explained by WebMD, some of the most common types of intrusive thoughts include:
- Negative intrusive thoughts: These most often result from poor self-esteem and self-worth. Negative intrusive thoughts can also often be common symptoms of anxiety.
- Violent intrusive thoughts: If you have violent intrusive thoughts (against yourself or other people), this could also be a sign that you are struggling significantly with your mental health. Usually, these will go away with time, but if they are recurring, you may need further support to help you get back to living a happy, fear-free life. These may also be the result of PTSD and traumatic experiences.
- Sexual intrusive thoughts: Let’s face it – we all have sexual thoughts from time to time! However, if they begin to feel inappropriate, overly frequent, or distressing, they may relate to past traumas that you have experienced, such as relationship trauma.
Sometimes, it’s worth noting that intrusive thoughts can also be random. You might consider them to be like “junk mail” for your mind – they may often seem weird or bizarre and have no real semblance on what you’re doing or your life in general.
How Do I Stop Intrusive Thoughts and Anxiety?
Implementing EMDR to Deal with Intrusive Thoughts
If intrusive thoughts have taken a strong hold over your life, you may want to consider compassionate EMDR therapy to help with this. Indeed, EMDR therapy is designed to help you reprocess past traumas and move on from experiences in your life that may be holding you back. As such, this can be an excellent place to start if you are experiencing intrusive thoughts caused by anxiety.
During EMDR therapy, rapid eye movements are used to help process the trauma by stimulating both brain hemispheres. In turn, previous experiences causing your anxiety can become less painful. This, in turn, may help lessen your experiences with intrusive thoughts and anxiety.
EMDR isn’t a quick fix, but it can be a gentle process to help you come to terms with your traumas and stop intrusive thoughts. EMDR is non-invasive, which also makes it more comfortable if you have been experiencing intrusive thoughts and anxiety.
Final Thoughts
In many cases, you might find the thought of learning how to deal with intrusive thoughts and anxiety can seem scary. However, with the right support, you have everything you need within yourself to recover from your intrusive thoughts. This can help you get back to leading a positive, happy life – which is exactly what you deserve!
If you’re ready to learn more about how to deal with intrusive thoughts and anxiety, please don’t hesitate. I’m here to help you find the strategies you deserve to overcome these struggles. You might just find that EMDR is the first stepping stone you need for your recovery.