The thought then causes them to wash their hands regularly or avoid dirty substances altogether. The intrusive thought does not have to mean anything about you, your intentions, your future actions, or whether you are a good or bad person. Those that have a fear of germs may see these germs on everything, and ultimately believe that the germs are going to cause illness and penetrate the skin. Analyzing the meaning of an intrusive thought is another way of placing judgment on the thought or placing judgment on yourself for having the thought.
Try not to analyze what your thoughts mean: Again, a thought is just a thought. It’s not fact or proof of anything, and it’s not a prediction of the future. This judgment often strengthens the intrusive thoughts and makes them harder to tolerate, so try to remove judgment by reminding yourself that “A thought is just a thought”. People with anxiety or OCD often label their intrusive thoughts as “bad” and negatively judge those thoughts and themselves. Remember that a thought is just a thought: Thoughts are not inherently “good” or “bad”. I see you’ve come up again” or “I’m noticing that I’m having a thought that I forgot to lock my door”. This can look like “Oh, there you are thought. Use mindfulness: Notice the intrusive thoughts when they come up without placing judgment on them or trying to push them away. The harder you try to not have a thought, the more that thought will pop up.
If you’re told not to think about a purple elephant, likely the first thing you think of is a purple elephant! It’s the same when it comes to intrusive thoughts. Things you can do to help with intrusive thoughts:ĭon’t try to push the thoughts away or get rid of them: Trying to suppress unwanted thoughts or make them go away will not work.