Stress Center Peer Support

One of the things I have tried to put my thumb on is why I have ALOT of difficulty with this session. I try to write down when something makes me feel down, sad, scared, anxious,... etc, but its SO fast I would almost need to write down an entire chapter to descibe the visualization of the thoughts and the emotions. As an example, I was on my jog and saw the back of someone that looked like a coworker at my previous job. I left there badly (due to my anxietys) so within about 1-4 seconds there was probably about 10 - 15 images/scenes that progressivly flashed within my mind, each one creating a progressivly worse emotion till my stomach was so churned up i could barf. ALL WITHIN 4 SECONDS. SO HOW in the world do you not only write that in a way that would really help, but stop that from happening. Its as if im being mugged 40 to 50 times a day. UG.

I also take on the burden of everyone else, so just seeing a car in someones driveway without a license plate creates the same pattern of 10 images and emotions, dealing with having to repair the car and juggling work with trying to get a new license plate. BARF

Or someone making a delivery makes me think they must be so stressed out from a simple job. BARF

Or someone who owns there own small business and they must be so anxious from installing carpets, cleaning gutters, laying floors all day for little income. Again with images and feelings. BARF

I have tried to write things down, but its not working for me. Is there any other method? or way? Trying to undermine these rapid irrational emotions is not coming to me.

I would suggest that your images with emotions attached are THOUGHTS that go through your mind. You see an image in your mind, something bad that happened to you (a thought)and have a perception (another thought) attached to that image. Does that make sense? So, all of this is thoughts or thinking and our perceptions of those thoughts. It's thoughts about thoughts.

Self-talk is nothing more than coming up with new thoughts to replace the old ones. Journaling is necessary to identify what is bothering you, what thoughts upset you and how they upset you. Once you've identified them you can go to work on finding different ways to PERCEIVE the negative thoughts from the way you presently perceive them. In truth, our perceptions, when we are emotionally ill, are out of touch with reality. Learning how to perceive ourselves and what has happened to us in a more healthy way enables us to think differently, more healthily, and heal from our wounds. This new way of perceiving negative events, this new way of thinking is our new self-talk.

Negative thinking or perception causes negative emotions. You see an image in your mind (thinking), you perceive and interpret this image (more thinking) as negative, and then you react to it with a negative emotion. Negative thinking causes negative emotions.

The program goes into some detail in the workbook about cognitive distortion, but Dr. David Burns books go into much more detail about these distortions. I would recommend picking up one of his books as an aid with the program.

you are having classic racing scary thoughts.....first off take a nice deep breath...your not nuts your just an overthinker. The more you let these thoughts scare you the worse it will get for you. I felt the same way when I started the lesson where we had to write down the thoughts we had. But you dont need to "write" them all down I think that the point that you are recognizing them is what your susposed to be learning here. So when your on your walk and looking at something that makes you start the cycle....say STOP in your head and start to deliberately think of something else...the sky are there clouds, is the sun shining, are there birds, do you see any butterflys look around see whatelse there is to see.

You need to retrain your brain to stop thinking the negative garbage youve gotten so good at. Anxiety can be tricky but you are smarter than it and you can and will beat this. Expect as you begin the program to feel even a little more of it coming out...thats good. Your facing the fears and the triggers that cause you to feel it so keep working at it.

Do the breathing excersise often and carry your carryalong cards with you when your feeling those thoughts come and cant reverse them take them out sit down for a moment and read through them....That will also put your thoughts in a different direction. Your mind can not think of two things at one time so you decide what your gonna think about.

You can do this.
It may seem really hard but it will get better and better.

Dodger