Anxiety Counseling: How You Can Interrupt Intrusive Thoughts

Are you so distracted by intrusive thoughts, memories, and rumination that your functioning and productivity are hindered? While there is nothing wrong with daydreams or an occasional rabbit hole of ideas and reflections, a pattern of intrusive thoughts can become problematic. This is particularly true if anxiety underlies the nature of your thoughts.

Anxiety sufferers often report that intrusive thoughts lead to a frustrating cycle of rumination and distraction in their everyday lives. It can be difficult to shift mentally and focus when unsettling thoughts pop up. You may find, too, that the distraction of such thoughts disrupts the quality of your life, career, or relationships.

Gratefully, you don’t have to continue to suffer these persistent mental sneak attacks from within. Consider these tips for managing worry and runaway thoughts.

6 Tips to Interrupt Your Intrusive Thoughts

1. Consider Your Circumstances

Life can feel unmanageable if you’re dealing with a cycle of distressing, intrusive thought patterns. To get a handle on them, it’s essential to know what might be influencing your state of mind. Rather than fret or fear the direction of your thinking, try to be more curious and aware.

Are you currently experiencing something difficult? Are there periods in your past that still disturb you? You are more likely to have negative, disruptive thoughts if you are…

• managing a high-stress lifestyle or concerns.

• coping with unresolved negative emotions like anger, guilt, or shame.

• handling a loss or significant life change.

• living through or avoiding past trauma.

• experiencing a health problem or sleep deprivation.

2. Schedule Periods for Worry

Have you ever lost hours to rumination? Does it feel like your intrusive thoughts drain and steal the energy you need to focus on your goals and relationships? If so, permitting “worry time” may help. 

Consider setting a daily appointment with yourself to think about the thoughts that usually sneak up on you. Don’t squelch them or judge them. Let the time you set act as a container for those runaway thoughts. When time is up, put the lid on them and move on. Pay them no more attention. Exercising intentional control over your time, worry, and the direction of your thinking becomes easier with practice.

3. Witness, Permit, and Release

Mindfulness meditation is a beneficial practice that teaches you to pause and interrupt intrusive thinking. With an emphasis on nonjudgmental observation, witness and accept intrusive thoughts. Try not to view them as positive or negative. Regard thoughts (intrusive or otherwise) as neutral. Allow them to exist and exit your mind. What’s most important is that you notice what happens internally in response. Mindfulness helps ease anxiety and focus your emotional energy where you want it.

4. Track Intrusive Thoughts

Routinely record your troublesome thoughts on a chart or in a notebook. This accomplishes two things: 1) you can notice your thoughts more objectively and visually without being so emotionally distracted and 2) you have a thought journal to review personally or share with your anxiety therapist.  

As you track your thoughts, you will likely recognize patterns of frequency, the subject matter, and more. As you gather information and become more self-aware, you may find you feel more empowered and recovery feels attainable.

5. Address Your Triggers

Often, key triggers precede intrusive thoughts. Learning to pay attention to your mind and body may help you feel less blindsided. In addition to journalling the actual thoughts, explore the timing, situations, and emotions that occur as well. If your thoughts and subsequent rumination recur so often that you struggle to identify triggers, your counselor can help you work through them.

6. Talk Back to Your Anxiety

The idea here is to challenge the dread or upset fueling your intrusive thoughts. You want to challenge them with consistent clarity. Essentially, replace fear with reason.

Ask yourself what evidence supports your thoughts. How likely are your imagined dangers or difficulties to happen? What keeps you from taking control of your mind and reactions? Try to reframe your irrational perceptions with the information you glean. Again, you may need professional guidance, and that’s okay.

Anxiety Counseling: Seek Help to Start Feeling Better

You can learn to regulate your anxious thoughts with qualified, compassionate support. Sessions with a therapist can help you rein in unhelpful rumination, restore a sense of mental and emotional control, and foster well-being. 

Let’s take the next step together. I am experienced and qualified to help. Please read more about my Anxiety Treatment services. Contact me for a consultation soon.