I sometimes have thoughts that are reoccurring over and over and over. I do not like this in myself. How can I get this to stop?

Intrusive thoughts can be very challenging to deal with. They can make you feel like a horrible person for having them. However your thoughts are not a representation of you. Just because you experience these thoughts doesn’t mean you believe or agree with them. You aren’t a bad person for having them. The fact you don’t want to experience these thoughts proves they aren’t true. They are just thoughts. The best way to deal with these thoughts is to accept them. It can be tempting to try to avoid them, wanting to stop thinking them is a natural response. However trying to stop thinking things can often make it worse. For example if someone tells you, “absolutely don’t, whatever you do, think about a blue elephant”, now you are thinking about a blue elephant and it’s hard to change your focus to something else without your mind drifting back to what you’re not supposed to be think of. Just to make sure you’re still not thinking about it. It is better to accept that the thoughts are present, but they don’t mean anything. They are only thoughts, thoughts do not equal actions, therefore they are not harming anyone. This can be difficult to do, however it gets easier with practice. Having intrusive thoughts doesn’t make you any more likely to act out on the thoughts. The thoughts will come and go, and although having them can be scary, experiencing them won’t hurt you or anyone else.