Many visitors to obsessive-compulsive disorder students often ask: "Teacher, I know that compulsion makes me very painful, and I also know a lot of theoretical knowledge and treatments about compulsiveness. Why can't I get out of obsessive-compulsive disorder and really get better?" As the saying goes, if you understand the truth, why can't you still have a bad life?
In fact, regarding the healing of obsessive-compulsive disorder and anxiety, we must not only understand the relevant theoretical knowledge, but also understand some of the deeper important factors that affect the recovery of obsessive-compulsive disorder and anxiety.
First of all, the essence of neurosis is not cognitive distortion, but emotional disorder.
What we know about obsessive-compulsive disorder and anxiety is just a knowledge of the mind level. It has not touched the emotional level. Emotions are rooted in the unconscious, are combined with our past experience and human instincts, and are the fundamental driving force of all thinking and actions. Cognition belongs to the category of consciousness, based on language, which is what we call thoughts.
cognition at the conscious level is nothing more than an interpreter of unconscious emotions. The generation of behavior is driven by inner emotions.
For example, for people with inferiority, negative thinking methods of self-depreciation and lack of confidence are just external manifestations of the inner crux of the heart. The core of the problem is the inner emotional experience formed by the long-term negative and attacked past experiences.
If we do not start with emotional repair and reconstruction, but only make adjustments at the rational cognitive level, it is just scratching the surface.
Positive psychologist Jonathan Hatter once used an interesting metaphor to describe the relationship between the two.
The emotional side of a person is like an elephant, and the rational side is like an elephant rider. It seemed like an elephant rider was directing the elephant on the back of the elephant, but in fact his power was insignificant. Once there is a conflict with the elephant, he wants to go left and the elephant wants to go right, but he can't resist the elephant.
The elephant's temper has three characteristics:
1. Great power. Once it is inspired, it is difficult for reason to control it.
2. Responsible by emotion. is easily driven by negative emotions such as anxiety and fear, and is also easily driven by positive emotions such as love, pity, and sympathy. So it may both become a resistance to change and a powerful driving force for change.
3. Controlled by experience. only recognizes the "benefits of experience" that we have actually experienced, and does not recognize the "benefits of expectation" that our rational mind conceives.
Among them, the benefits of expectation are that they happen in the future, abstract, and are driven by reason. And the benefits of experience are what happens now or in the past, concretely, and truly feel.
Once a certain behavior gains this benefit, it will be retained in our lives, even if we do not realize it, it will still affect our behavior and be constantly strengthened.
enhancement not only has positive enhancement, but also negative enhancement .
Positive reinforcement refers to the fact that when a certain behavior is displayed, your behavior is strengthened by increasing the results you want.
negative reinforcement refers to the fact that when a certain behavior is shown, it will strengthen your behavior by reducing the results you don’t want.
For patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder and anxiety disorder, positive reinforcement is to relieve inner anxiety and fear through repeated compulsive actions or compulsive thinking. Give yourself a temporary sense of security and a moment of tranquility.
negative reinforcement is to prevent yourself from facing inner anxiety and what you think is imperfect through confrontation and rejection.
So, how to fundamentally change? That is to create new experience
The essence of change is to create new experiences to replace old experiences, so that changes can truly happen.
For obsessive-compulsive disorder and anxiety disorder, in theory, we know that when obsessive-compulsive symptoms occur, we should let it go and do what we should do. But the power of past experience is too powerful to let ourselves stop by the commands of our minds.So how do we create new experiences?
breath-observation method is precisely through practice to shape new experiences and feelings, which in turn helps us to completely get rid of compulsions and fears.
suggests that friends with obsessive-compulsive disorder and anxiety disorders go to read the two books "Perfect Obsessive-compulsive disorder" and "Emotional Self-help".
The method of observing breath is: with a continuous focus, observe and be aware of the breathing in and out of the nostrils at the moment, and maintain an equal mind for any feelings, thoughts, and thoughts you experience at the moment.
The breath observation method will occur during the practice of
There are various problems, such as the constant interference of thoughts and thinking in the mind, as well as various uncomfortable feelings such as soreness and pain in the body. We must be aware of these conditions that occur. But don’t be brought into it, that is, you must maintain an equal mind that is not entangled, rejected, suppressed, and judged. In the end, you will realize that these situations that occur will go through a process from occurrence to disappear. Have a deeper understanding of impermanence. This is a practical exercise to train our mind and concentration.
Through continuous deepening of practice, our inner concentration will become stronger and stronger. When facing impermanent changes and interference, you can better maintain inner peace and awareness, and at the same time you have the courage to face your own imperfections and anxiety. The continuous accumulation of experiences like
is also a process of our slowly developing new experiences and feelings.
breath-observation practice is a small simulation field, which experiences calmness and emotional control ability through the response to uncomfortable interference such as emotions and thinking and physical pain during the practice.
Then bring this ability and feelings to the real life scene.
Our past emotional experience is: exclusion of our own bad and imperfections. A new experience is to be aware of any situation and be equal in every situation and no longer reject it.
At this time, there is no longer any conflict in my heart, which fundamentally disintegrates the thinking mode of obsessive-compulsive disorder and anxiety disorder. Then you will get out of obsessive-compulsive disorder and anxiety disorder completely.
