HealingWell
Search Close Search
☰

breakthroughs but still confused...

Support Forums
>
Anxiety & Panic Disorders
✚ New Topic ✚ Reply
❬ ❬ Previous Thread |Next Thread ❭ ❭
Posted 4/16/2013 9:54 PM (GMT 0)
hello everybody. today i visited my therapist at my school ( heads up im a 16 year old male, im a sophmore and and an athletic person) and i told him my worries about becoming a schizophrenic. he told me that i showed absolutely no symptoms of schizophrenia as far as hallucinations of any kind, word salad, or delusions. but im still stuck on thinking that i am having delusions. about a week ago or so i was having one of my anxious episodes and was stupid enough to google symptoms of schizophrenia and saw an example of a delusion. the example was " thinking there are microchips in my head and the government is using them to control my thinking or so i dont get smarter or something" and now that thought is stuck in my head and im afraid that i might start beleiving it or i already am and just dont know it. i understand that is a ridiculous idea but it just worries me. confused sad
Posted 4/16/2013 11:49 PM (GMT 0)
When one has access to Google you sure don't need a horror movie!
When I was your age I was convinced I had lung cancer, I didn't even smoke.
Until a Dr. sat me down and showed me my X rays I was convinced.

After that I kinda just let it all go and it didnt bother me again.

Larry ***
Posted 4/17/2013 2:26 AM (GMT 0)
kinda thinking that is one of my main problems. new worries, straight to google.
Posted 4/17/2013 4:00 AM (GMT 0)
Hey Echo, those chips are defective! lol
Being able to laugh at ourselves in a mental storm may be a life raft.

Your Friend

Larry ***
Posted 4/17/2013 5:12 AM (GMT 0)
Echo,

There is a vast difference between obsessive thinking and delusional thinking.

Obsessive thinking is a by product of an exhaused/anxious mind. It will not develop into delusions...it will just make you miserable.

Delusions are completely different. If you were delusional, you would be posting empatically that you did indeed have microchips in your brain, and that the government was out to get you, ect...

Instead, you are dealing with a thought/idea that is stuck in your head...it is a worry, not a conviction...this is a big difference!

You have been told by your school therapist that you have nothing to worry about as far as the fear of schizophrenia...and although we can't diagnose you...I (and probably also Larry) woud say that we agree with what you were told.

Work on lowering your overall stress load through self-help coping mechanisms, and you will surely see these symptoms start to fade.;)

Keep talking with us!

S.C.
Posted 4/18/2013 1:25 AM (GMT 0)
thanks guys for the support. this is all getting better, even today i went to church and i said to my self simply that if i really had it then i wouldnt know it and expect it to be the environment and not me. andi went back to my normal self for a good hour or so. i kinda think that i am ocd of some type seeing how all my life everytime i would watch a cool show or play a cool video game i would obsess about it for days on end. maybe now that i understand that its just me having weird thoughts i can rid myself of them, thanks again everyone!!!!
Posted 4/18/2013 1:55 AM (GMT 0)
another questiono though, if you have these thoughts and ask yourself.. " what if there really are chips in my head" and then tell yourself that " no that ridiculous and impossible.... but what if there is??" this is a cycle that im going through now. is that still obsessive thinking or the beginning of a delusion??
Posted 4/18/2013 2:51 AM (GMT 0)
It helps if you understand the brain mechanics of this. See a one minute you tube
called anxiety and the amygdala. You need to know that "what if" thinking
actually sets up a loop in the brain to do more "what if" thinking. Obviously "what if"
thoughts are stress thoughts and tense up the physical body. You have to stop
the habit of What if. A lot of people think that is the normal way to think.

It's not. It is a stress channel that creates a loop. I had panic disorder a long time
ago and finally got a therapist who was specialized in this area. Stopping
"What if" thinking was one of the first things she taught. I found it was easier
if I stopped "future thoughts" bc the what if was sneaking in without me noticing,
but I did notice when I was in the future. I could refuse to go there, and would
be knocked back into the here and now. It takes around 3 weeks to break a habit,
focus on this, it will bring a lot of relief.
Posted 4/18/2013 3:46 AM (GMT 0)
I know what helps me is to focus on the now. There is no try, only do or do not, there is no what if, it either is or it isn't, and we aren't guaranteed tomorrow so just focus on the now. I used to do the brain bashing thing as well and always thought there was a problem before I even knew if there was one or not. I do deep breathing exercises and any time my brain starts to think about what if, I immediately cut it off. Yes it does take practice and time but you will get there and feel better. I also take a couple of supplements that help me, one is L-Tyrosine and the other is L-Theanine. I am not saying they help everyone and I'm not a doctor so I can only say that they work for me. Good luck and feel better.
✚ New Topic ✚ Reply