Posted by utopizen on April 10, 2004, at 23:57:21
In reply to Re: Obsessional Thinking: Can anyone relate?, posted by Civ on April 7, 2004, at 14:44:55
I have to say if I followed the approach of doing a daily log and calendar, it'd be unlikely that would help my own obsessional thinking problem-- usually I tend to think solutions like that will help me someway, and then obsess over making the daily log, calendar, writing long to-do lists, etc.-- I have the ADD+obsessional thinking combo, not good.
I get CBT for social anxiety and ADD, and now I'm thinking I have pretty bad depression, and have concluded I also have obsessional thinking. I never suspected it before, but it all seems so clear to me now.
I'll often times ruminate over ideas, even think of how I may say something in the future as I daydream, and repeat the same thought in a sort of futile effort of trying to "revise" the thought so it sounds slightly better each time.
It's not bad for me, because it seems to work out as an English major who often puts off his work, b/c doing all-nighters seems to mesh well with obsessing over the same paper topic for 8 solid hours.
But it gets annoying when you have to worry about calling up companies to replace broken products, returning them, and making such mundane problems your distractions from actual prioties on your agenda (e.g., getting a paper worked on so you don't actually have to resort to doing an all-nighter once again for the 60th time in your college career).
I've convinced myself, as a procrastinating ADDer, recently, to say this to myself:
"look, you have been putting off seeing your professor from last semester for months now to change a grade that you should have changed by now, this is the root of your depression right now, you worry about it daily, and you think worrying about how you're going to return this stupid hygiene device will help you have a better life 2 weeks from now when you'll have to cope with the prospect of failing out of school? It can wait."
That guy calling my voicemail asking him to return his message so he can get some stupid info from me I don't actually care about resolving today? It can wait. The stupid thoughts in my head that try to distract me from finishing papers so I can actually seeing my professor and change my incomplete-turned-F to a real grade? They can wait. My worries over what drug I should try for my depression, which is a result of such obsessions? They can wait.
poster:utopizen
thread:333631
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20040407/msgs/335074.html