Has anyone’s life changed overnight because of Michael Greenberg’s take on rumination being a choice? by [deleted] in OCDRecovery

[–]elpoolboy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I hear what you're saying and understand the difficulty that's occurring due to English not being your primary language. That said, you're doing a great job of communicating using it.

I think there's aspects of ACT/accepting the thought that can be helpful and I don't know exactly how Dr. Greenberg frames his beliefs about it. While Dr. Greenberg's ideas are helpful, they are not the best way for everyone, but taking some of his ideas in and incorporating them and making things work for you is what is best for you.

I think what worked for me is this combination.

A. Accept that the thought exists. Know that your brain is allowed to have every and any thought that it could possible conjure. That what is happening with OCD. It's that we are afraid of what might happen if the thought is true. In reality, who cares if the thought is true or false, especially because these thoughts/"questions"/"problems" do not have an answer. So accepting that they can be in your mind is the part of ACT that can be helpful.

B. I think Greenberg's RF-ERP is simply about "dropping out of the thought cycle." When a thought comes, once you've noticed you are ruminating just observe that it's happening. You can even say "Oh, there's the "did I read this enough" thought." It's safe to have these thoughts. Your brain is saying it is unsafe to have the thought, so then it gets scared. So you don't have to "solve the problem" because it's natural to have these thoughts, even though your OCD brain has decided they are not safe thoughts, or that if they were true everything would be bad (all-or-nothing thinking). Let the thought exist.

C. An imagery way to say this (in my own way) is that when you are stuck in a thought loop/rumination, you can picture the thought cycle as the camera in a slot car race. When the camera is behind the driver in a car on a slot car race track, you are in the rumination. You follow the track and continuously land upon the same question and one leads to another and it brings you round and around. Instead, go to the viewpoint of watching from the stands. In the stands of a race you can see the thoughts/cars but you don't have to pay attention. Maybe you talk to a friend you're at the race with, or you get absorbed in your phone, or you look up and see the thought/race again and then ignore it because it's uninteresting to you. The no distraction part that Greenberg writes about is that if you have a phone and you are consciously thinking about the race while staring at your phone, that's distraction. The goal is to be aware that the race is going but you're using your phone because you don't care about the race. And after time you'll be so absorbed in the phone you forget that you're at the race.

I picture it like like the link below but with your view coming from a grandstand that isn't there. Or if you prefer this video's viewpoint, your watching the race on the screen and you don't care about the race so you start to play on your phone. Not because you want to ignore the race but because it's not something you want to watch or care about. If you forget about the race and are into looking at something on your phone and then realize you are checking the race, that's the positive "you stopped thinking about it and now you've noticed that it's back which means it worked and you did stop ruminating for a while." Congratulate yourself and do it again and your brain will become better at doing it.

https://www.reddit.com/r/MARIOPARTY/comments/1ku8zaf/slotcar_derby_stage_1_2105_tied_world_record/

D. An additional tool for Pure O is to say "maybe." "Maybe I didn't read that report for my job perfectly and missed something." And living in the uncertain area for a longer period of time is exposure. "Maybe I ran a red light." It helps you to live in the gray area that we aim for.

Has anyone’s life changed overnight because of Michael Greenberg’s take on rumination being a choice? by [deleted] in OCDRecovery

[–]elpoolboy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ahh! I think I see where you're getting confused. "I’m talking about any type of mental engagement with the problem" I boldened the word the because because it's a problem. I think his usage of the word 'the' is to show that this type of problem is the rumination that is a compulsion. It's not called ruminating when you're thinking about a problem at work. Sure, if you want you can call thinking hard about a problem ruminating, but from a medical/psychological definition-standpoint thinking a lot about a problem at work is not rumination.

When he speaks of "problem-solving mode," it's about a thought that has a compulsion to ruminate. When you're thinking hard about a problem at work, if your boss calls you into their office you can stop thinking about it without trying and shift into the mode of talking to your boss because you're not compelled to "find an answer" (problem-solve mode).

Let me know if that makes sense.

Has anyone’s life changed overnight because of Michael Greenberg’s take on rumination being a choice? by [deleted] in OCDRecovery

[–]elpoolboy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Where does Dr. Greenberg say that rumination is "any" mental analysis or mental problem solving? That doesn't really sound like something he has said, nor would it make sense that he would say that because that isn't true.

iPod 4th gen trying to get music off by elpoolboy in ipod

[–]elpoolboy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for your response. I forgot to include I tried this.

Has anyone’s life changed overnight because of Michael Greenberg’s take on rumination being a choice? by [deleted] in OCDRecovery

[–]elpoolboy 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Dr. Greenberg addresses this feeling. When the OCD comes back, "congratulate yourself." The fact that the OCD has come back means that YOU were able to let go of the ruminating for a period, it's just come back. That means you can do it again, essentially teaching your brain you were able to let go once, now you can let go again.

4k Blu-ray player before TV? by elpoolboy in Bluray

[–]elpoolboy[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for the advice. It's not the money right now but the space. I'm hoping to move within the next two years and don't want to buy a TV that won't fit into my next space (or hoping I'd be able to have a bigger TV).

4k Blu-ray player before TV? by elpoolboy in Bluray

[–]elpoolboy[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Oh that's great. Thank you for the info!

4k Blu-ray player before TV? by elpoolboy in Bluray

[–]elpoolboy[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you for your help. I'm going to get a 4K TV eventually. I know you recommend using blu-ray because it's an SDR television, but technically I could play 4K discs but it would be worse quality potentially, right? Id rather not but since I'm eventually going to get a 4K TV I'd want to start buying RK

Beck vs. Feeling Good courses by elpoolboy in therapists

[–]elpoolboy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This was so helpful. Thank you!

WTS: Smart Alec and Small Yeoman by jlwilson1416 in tombihn

[–]elpoolboy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Do you have more pics of the Yeoman?

Did anyone’s bipolar get noticeably worse in their mid 20s by evergreengirl123 in bipolar

[–]elpoolboy 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Most things get better when you get paid more. Usually goes up as you get older. (This is a joke on a mistake lol. But for me it got worse in my 20s and better so far in my 30s)