The Power of NOW

[Chrisfishes]

Hi there,

It's been a while since my last post. I have since split from my gf and returned to canada. My main reason for doing what I have done was for me to sort out my sp, which had become a real problem in my relationship. I saw a psycologist over here aswell $160/hr.. I had never really been diagnosed, and I wanted to make sure my sp was the only thing I needed to deal with. We ruled out many other disorders that have sa as a major symptom, and I was left with a "generalized social phobia".
He recomended an anxiety workbook that i could use, I found it helpful but one thing that I could never understand was how could I ever hope to overcome something that I am spending everywaking hour thinking about. I then decided a non anxiety book might be the answer. I came across "The power of Now by eckhart tolle" I had read similar books with similar messages but this one really hit home.He's not teaching anything new, more pointing things out that you already know.
What I have discovered is that my sp only exsists when I am thinking about. So it seems easy ...stop thinking about it!
This may seem like a monumental task but it is not.
I am looking after my dad's house now and 2 weeks ago I was scared to even go in the backyard because I didn't want to see the neigbours who I don't even know, I was going hungry cause i was scared of the supermarket. Now I feel this indescribable peace all through my body.
I still get the same negative thoughts but I can catch them and discard them before they have an impact on me .
So all I want say is you are the only one that can really help yourself, as your mind is what you are fighting against. Your sp is not helping you I asssume so why give it any attention?
You are keeping it alive... it feeds off your energy like a parasite.

 

[black_mamba]

I still get the same negative thoughts but I can catch them and discard them before they have an impact on me .

For some reason I really, really like this statement. The mental image I got was of a person grabbing/swatting an irritating fly down and discarding it. (sorry all you insect lovers out there!)

Sp parasite? Sp nits more like! Always demanding to be scratched...great mental image, just great, silly black mamba.

Good post Chris. *thumbsup*

 

[J]

That's the ticket-- cathc the bad thoughts and throw them away, tell them off, ignore them, switch your attention elsewhere-- good stuff to do for all metnal issues, methinks .

I try to do this myself, with fair-to-middling success. I should also note that when i was on meds it was much easier to do. I tend to obsess about things, and often don't realize when I'm having stupid irrational 'bad' SP/depression/etc thoughts... they seem so real and rational at the time... that is what seems to me to be the biggest challenge, being able to recognize these thoughts for what they are (BS) at the time you think them.

 

[Chrisfishes]

Yes there is a method. The first thing you have to do is to realize that you are not your mind. Your mind is a very powerful weapon that you have but the trick is to not be controlled by it. Most people are controlled by there mind but they don't have to be. After you have realized that your mind and your being are two separate things, you need to begin to disidentify from your mind. this will be very difficult for some as most people are identified by their mind (opinions,judgements,beliefs). You can do this by watching your mind in action. Question your thoughts, are they helping you? You need to be vigilant, your mind will be trying to take over all the time but over time you will begin to gain some control over your thinking. you will be able to turn it on and off like a light. imagine. There is only one time to start this method and luckily that time is NOW as that is the only time that will ever be. If you want to know more I highly recomend the book I mentioned earlier Eckhart Tolle - The power of Now.
It's not a gimmick, it could change your life.
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[black_mamba]

I'm definitely going to try and imagine them as annoying flies and swat them down before they get to me. Seriously, I think that will work well for me as long as I can trick my brain into thinking this crazy illusion in my head is reality.

OooO I love this idea yay.

(simply saying 'stop those thoughts' is very non-descript and therefore difficult to actually carry out, right?)

 

[alanj]

"(simply saying 'stop those thoughts' is very non-descript and therefore difficult to actually carry out, right?)"

Yes. It kind of implies that the thoughts are real and powerful in themselves and that you are trying to fight them, which actually gives them power. It's best to just observe them without judgement and let them drift away.
This is a great thread you guys.

 

[shellixstarry]

Hey all. This is my first post by the way (word lol)... But I just have to say that while yes this is a wonderful post, alot of my social anxiety comes from the fact that I know the moment is fleeting and now is the only time we have... It almost paralyzes me to think I'm not living "fluidly" and we all must know here that what we fear we create. Well one of my greatest fears is not being "present" (in illiteral terms of course) so when anxiety starts kicking in this is my biggest concern and therefore my biggest problem. Its my own fault I'm stuck. And while I really wanna read that book, or maybe even look for it on scribd, I'm scared that it'll make TOO much sense and get in my head in a negative way, if anyone knows what I mean. Idk. Anyone else have this kind of problem?