It's a small problem - but I do not know why I'm making a big deal out of it.
A few months back, i saw a sexually explicit photo of a person i always felt uncomfortable with and it has been bothering me so much. I have always felt uncomfortable with this person but seeing that photo came as a shock and I have been shaken up since. This person has history of being kind of a creep, and we only met because of a one time project. However, that photo sickened me so much, and I am still attempting to recover from it. I get panic attacks and intrusive thoughts about his face - and my brain likes to mess up my thoughts and talk about how "maybe you're thinking of him because you're secretly in love with the creep" or "maybe you're just as sick as he is, so these thoughts surface" - it's a side effect of blaming myself, and recently things have been getting better as I have been practicing positive self-admiration. However, it's not long term as this pandemic has taken away a lot of my opportunities to cope, and having major exams coming up doesn't help. Hence, I'm stuck in this endless cycle, and I do not know what to do. It's a very small issue compared to many other larger ones, but it has genuinely affected me - and I am not sure how to get out of it. I intend to go out with some friends soon as I have not seen them in awhile, but I am still hoping for something more long-term especially in this period of self-isolation.
@positivitybookworm
Hi !
I am sorry for all this situation you are going through.
The things or events that can trigger a chain of negative reactions are very subjective, depending on our previous experiences and issues, and can be very specific to us.
What's important is to recognize them and deal with them in the best way possible.
You could use grounding techniques each time these intrusive thoughts take hold of your mind, like THESE here. or THESE ones.
It might also be useful to fill your mind with alternative strong images, by watching intense (but not triggering to you) movies, browsing online pictures of some topic that interests you a lot (art, photography, science, history, fashion, whatever...), or doing guided visualizations like those found in 7 Cups HERE or in Youtube channels like Headspace, etc.
I hope some of these helps.
In any case, rest assured that what you are experiencing is a normal phenomenon, that might happen to any of us, at any time.
All the best,
Marcelo.
Well I don’t think you’re making a big deal out of nothing! If I’m honest I understand how you feel (I’m sorry if you find me saying that annoying) as I’m a student going through numerous exams as well and I’ve found myself having a lot of weird uncomfortable thoughts constantly and I hate it... It really doesn’t help that you have to do so much work for school when you’re trying to cope with what’s going on. I’m so sorry about what’s happened to you! I’m still a kid who can barely talk about my own feelings...unless it’s completely anonymous...but I think you should definitely try to put your mind on other things like by watching funny things or doing things that make you happy, for example using TikTok 😳 hehe I use it all the time to cope with stress. But it’s probably better to do something productive like drawing, singing, dancing. Do things that you love :) and do them frequently! Also Noni said that sometimes it’s good to accept your bad feelings as long as you know that it won’t stop you from being great! (Something along the lines of that hehe) I’m sorry if my post isn’t useful I just hope u find a way to cope with everything! And that you feel at least a little bit better knowing that someone is thinking positively about you!! :) I hope things get better!!!!!!!!!