Do you also have things you can't think about because, to you, those things are just too horrible or sad? (not trauma)

[AuroraBorealis]

I have things I can't think deeply about, let alone talk about them or read/watch content about them without feeling so much that it chokes me up. These things are not trauma-related. They're just things that either scare me or fill me with so intense sadness that my mind makes like a mental block.
These things include (but are not limited to):
- climate change
- animal euthanasia (I'm in no way against it as long as it's to spare an animal from bad suffering due to an illness, just so there's no misunderstanding)
It was always like that, not only from a certain age on. I remember when we first learned about climate change in elementary school, I couldn't sleep for a week because I felt so awful about it.

Ironically, I am somewhat of a (true) crime nerd. I love listening to podcasts, series and read books about crime. Never any issues there. But as soon as there's an animal suffering, I shut off.

Do you experience this related to certain topics, too?
I expect it is somewhat normal, but I've never met anyone else who experiences this, too.

 

[Greening]

I don't have things I cannot think about at all. I have some things, topics, in the news for instance, that I limit so I don't feel powerless about what I cannot do anything about. Feeling powerless helps no one, and it can be avoided.
When it comes to animal abuse, I became a vegan 12 years ago, after having witnessed enought of that and asked myself if I wanted to support it, and answered, clearly, with a no.
So I have done, and sometimes return to do, little changes in my life, that makes me feel like I live in a way that makes sense while living my life on Earth.

 

[Nervous Rex]

Okay, this is a stupid but sincere response: Zombies.

If I read or watch anything with zombies in it, I will have nightmares. I think the horror of it for me is the idea that something beyond my control could make me evil. So apparently at age 50, I am still not old enough to watch zombie movies.

I also have a hard time with real-life tragedies or atrocities. I will check the news and see a headline about a murder and just keep scrolling because the headline itself is more than I want to know.

 

[AuroraBorealis]

Okay, this is a stupid but sincere response: Zombies.

If I read or watch anything with zombies in it, I will have nightmares. I think the horror of it for me is the idea that something beyond my control could make me evil. So apparently at age 50, I am still not old enough to watch zombie movies.

I also have a hard time with real-life tragedies or atrocities. I will check the news and see a headline about a murder and just keep scrolling because the headline itself is more than I want to know.

I don't think that's stupid at all. Thank you for your honesty!

 

[Mr. Stevens]

I have similar fears and discomforts as you, AuroraBorealis. And many other so-called "intrusive" thoughts. But, no thought is wrong to have, and I think these things must be confronted. Some due to a social/ethical obligation. Others, because accepting them makes them dissipate naturally.

 

[Rodafina]

I feel the same as @Mr. Stevens. I have lots of uncomfortable thoughts and in the past, I had trained my mind to avoid these thoughts. This made the discomfort and anxiety much worse, however, and it is better for me to confront these thoughts and process them all the way to the end. Sometimes, sharing them with another (or here on the forum) is the answer to dissipating the horribleness or the sadness for me.

 

[AuroraBorealis]

I have similar fears and discomforts as you, AuroraBorealis. And many other so-called "intrusive" thoughts. But, no thought is wrong to have, and I think these things must be confronted. Some due to a social/ethical obligation. Others, because accepting them makes them dissipate naturally.

I feel quite the same as @Mr. Stevens. I have lots of uncomfortable thoughts and in the past, I had trained my mind to avoid these thoughts. This made the discomfort and anxiety much worse, however, and it is better for me to confront these thoughts and process them all the way to the end. Sometimes, sharing them with another (or here on the forum) is the answer to dissipating the horribleness or the sadness for me.

That's an interesting view.
I don't ignore those thoughts entirely. For example, with climate change, I know the facts and I try to live as sustainably as possible. Also my partner's very interested in living sustainably. But I never manage to read articles or watch documentaries about what scientists predict for the future because it fills me with too much dread and even panic. I don't know if it will help to try and confront myself with this thing, since I feel so helpless about it.
With the animals thing, I would never deny my sick pet euthanasia if that was the right thing to do. But it feels like the thought literally breaks my heart. I know the facts about animal abuse and slaughter houses, since we leanrt about them in school, but it is so dreadful and horrible to me and I feel so helpless that my brain sort of blocks any thought about them. I am a vegetarian, though, and always want to help all animals and volunteer at shelters and so on (sadly, I don't have the time to do as much as I'd like to).

Do you really feel like it helps to confront these things while there's not much I can do about them?

 

[Rodafina]

Do you really feel like it helps to confront these things while there's not much I can do about them?

For me, I think that a huge part of confronting the feelings is accepting that there are so many things that I can do nothing about. It is very difficult and very humbling and I understand you perspective completely. When I feel the way you are describing, I take a logical approach to understanding, "What can I feasibly do about this?" If the answer is truly nothing, then that realization becomes part of the processing. Acceptance. If there are even tiny things that I can do, then I try to do those things diligently.

It makes sense that you would not seek out information on the topics you described above. I also do not seek out information on certain topics, but if I am faced with it for some reason, then I do my best to confront it, understand nit and work through the uncomfortable feelings. Sometimes, more information is actually helpful than letting my imagination fill in the unknowns. But, for sure, this is new to me over the last few years. Before that, I was a master of avoidance.

I think that is one reason why getting the thoughts out of my head can help a bit - finding others who are equally exasperated or anxious about such things is helpful somehow. (Better than mulling it over in my own mind and letting my anxiety feed itself.)

 

[AuroraBorealis]

if I am faced with it for some reason, then I do my best to confront it, understand nit and work through the uncomfortable feelings.

That's a very sound approach that I haven't managed with these topics so far.

finding others who are equally exasperated or anxious about such things is helpful somehow.

I honestly admire ecological activists so much, those who work themselves really into the topic and read all they can about it to educate people. Or those who do the same for animal rights. Getting as much into these topics as necessary to really educate others about them would dissolve me into either a puddle of tears or put me into a state of panic.
It makes sense that finding others with the same worries might be helpful, but it's just so incredibly hard to talk about these things, since right now I can't even think them through myself.

 

[Levitat0r]

I'm sure there are, but for some reason, they don't spring to mind...

 

[marc_101]

Yep. I don't mean to be flippant, but I think it means you are a human being with the ability to think in abstract and make predictions about different scenarios. Some of those scenarios trigger emotions. I'd call that empathy. Climate change is scary in the short- and long-term. Your mind starts thinking about the consequences and that is spooky. You like animals, so thinking about animals dying for no reason is sad.

We also do that in reverse chronologically -- thinking about past events or even watching a movie in which something bad is happening.

I don't have (much) problem watching violence in TV, but I can't watch violence against animals. I think mostly because animals are more vulnerable and have no means to make rational decisions.

When I was a kid I used to freak myself out thinking about infinity. I still do, actually. Daydreaming is my superpower.

 

[Yeshuasdaughter]

I don't like scary movies, or news stories about people or animals getting hurt, human trafficking, etc. They stick with me. Make me sad for a very long time. Make it so I don't sleep. I try to avoid them.

I try to focus on joy, and gratitude. And in my little circle of the world, I try to make other people's lives better in any small ways I can think of.

 

[Misty Avich]

I get really upset if I think about any innocent person or animal getting hurt.
I seem to be worse with animals, although that does NOT mean I don't have any empathy for people, I just feel it differently with people (particularly adults), not less exactly.

 

[AuroraBorealis]

Yep. I don't mean to be flippant, but I think it means you are a human being with the ability to think in abstract and make predictions about different scenarios. Some of those scenarios trigger emotions. I'd call that empathy. Climate change is scary in the short- and long-term. Your mind starts thinking about the consequences and that is spooky. You like animals, so thinking about animals dying for no reason is sad.

We also do that in reverse chronologically -- thinking about past events or even watching a movie in which something bad is happening.

I don't have (much) problem watching violence in TV, but I can't watch violence against animals. I think mostly because animals are more vulnerable and have no means to make rational decisions.

When I was a kid I used to freak myself out thinking about infinity. I still do, actually. Daydreaming is my superpower.

I don't mean simply feeling bad about certain things. I mean feeling so intensely bad about certain things that I can't expose myself to any kind of content about them because they either scare me so much or make me too sad. Like, not being able to join or even really listen to a discussion about these things because I get immensely anxious.

Apart from that, I agree with you. I also used to freak myself out thinking about infinity, for example regarding space, or thinking about what it might be like after I'm dead. Things I guess all kids do to some extent

 

[marc_101]

Apart from that, I agree with you. I also used to freak myself out thinking about infinity, for example regarding space, or thinking about what it might be like after I'm dead. Things I guess all kids do to some extent

Oh, a fellow infinity person! Yes, thinking about space and the nothing of death freaks me out!

It's not that common, at least from my informal survey. In most classes I teach, out of curiosity, I ask students if they freak out thinking about infinity (it comes naturally in statistics --asymptotic theory). So far, out of maybe 200 students over the years, no more than 5 said yes. Maybe others didn't want to admit it, but now I wonder. We should do a poll.

And I agree with you. Certain topics are too intense and I avoid them.

 

[AuroraBorealis]

It's not that common, at least from my informal survey. In most classes I teach, out of curiosity, I ask students if they freak out thinking about infinity (it comes naturally in statistics --asymptotic theory). So far, out of maybe 200 students over the years, no more than 5 said yes. Maybe others didn't want to admit it, but now I wonder. We should do a poll.

Really? That's a surprise, I was convinced that everyone does/did this I would always get this sinking feeling in my stomach and like my brain would "fly away" if I kept thinking more into infinity. I know that sounds weird, but that's how it felt/still feels if I really get into it.

 

[marc_101]

I feel it in my stomach too! Like I reach a realization that scares me. Thinking about space and you keep going and going and then "find" something that just freaks you out. The something is the never ending of the thing. With death is the vanishing of the self. It happens when mediating, too. I read some people saying something like that in the context of meditation

 

[lovely_darlingprettybaby]

I have things I can't think deeply about, let alone talk about them or read/watch content about them without feeling so much that it chokes me up. These things are not trauma-related. They're just things that either scare me or fill me with so intense sadness that my mind makes like a mental block.
These things include (but are not limited to):
- climate change
- animal euthanasia (I'm in no way against it as long as it's to spare an animal from bad suffering due to an illness, just so there's no misunderstanding)
It was always like that, not only from a certain age on. I remember when we first learned about climate change in elementary school, I couldn't sleep for a week because I felt so awful about it.

Ironically, I am somewhat of a (true) crime nerd. I love listening to podcasts, series and read books about crime. Never any issues there. But as soon as there's an animal suffering, I shut off.

Do you experience this related to certain topics, too?
I expect it is somewhat normal, but I've never met anyone else who experiences this, too.

I get sad watching shows where people talk about their suffering or sad news stories
I get sad about my own pain and feel like I deserve to feel loved and happy.
I get sad and angry about human rights violations.

 

[Chailatte_]

Yes, anything violent, horror-related, injustices, accidents... I can't handle it. It hurts, makes me feel "powerless," I don't know, but it overwhelms me. I don't even read news of this nature. With a vivid imagination, I process the information received, and it's like I can see it as a movie in my head, and it makes me feel unwell.

 

[Metalhead]

I can watch the grisliest and most graphic horror movies out there, but I draw the line when young children get killed off in movies. I don’t handle that well.