Are you ruminating? Here's how you can tell.

 Hi friends! Today we are going to be talking about ruminating. Ruminating is one of the biggest symptoms when it comes to Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.

So what is ruminating exactly?

Ruminating is when you repeatedly engage with the same thoughts you're having, over and over again. It's mentally reviewing your thoughts in an effort to hopefully figure something out.

Let me give you an OCD example.

Someone has Harm OCD, which can cause violent intrusive thoughts. A mother is holding her baby and suddenly has a thought or urge to drop the baby or harm it. Ruminating is mentally reviewing and replaying those thoughts trying to figure out why you had them. It's best explained as a spiral because once you start, it is very hard to stop. It also almost never actually solves anything, but leaves you more anxious than when you started.

So how do we know if we're ruminating? The best way I can tell, and from attending therapy for an extended period of time, is by asking yourself this question: What problem are you trying to solve? Can you solve it?

When it comes to ruminating, the answer is almost always no. And that's how you know when you're ruminating. You keep going over those intrusive thoughts again and again and saying to yourself, "Why did I have this thought? What does that thought mean? If I had an intrusive thought, it must mean..."

etc.

People who have OCD use rumination as a tool to figure out the meaning of their thoughts, but the truth is, our thoughts have no real reflection of our values in life, they're simply...thoughts, and rumination is not going to give you the answers you're looking for. I can promise you that.

So what do we do when our brain starts to ruminate? What do we do to avoid that spiral? Here's what has helped me:

Asking myself this question ALWAYS: What problem am I trying to solve, and can I solve it?

If my answer is no, I know I'm ruminating and actively choose to not engage. Not engaging can look like this.

"Maybe, maybe not."

"Okay brain."

"K." (my favorite)

These are all ways we can choose to respond to rumination. Another tool is just simply acknowledging that you are ruminating. Sometimes just labeling it can be powerful enough to discourage you from partaking in it.

If you are struggling with ruminating, here's something to think about.

Is this behavior bringing you closer or farther away from your values?

This is something my therapist said to me that really changed the way I think about compulsions. I know my values in life are accepting myself and growing as a person. I know by engaging in my compulsions, I am getting further away from my values.

I hope this helped! Let me know any other topics you want me to cover!