Need some clarification please…

[bahiano]

Hey everybody… i am just reading a quote good book on Health Anxiety from Dr. David Veale… I was a bit

astonished as i the chapter where he lists all the anxiety symptoms, he lists „hearing voices/mind noises“ as an

anxiety symptom… is that a typo or did I miss something? Kind of scared me, as my main theme is schiz-ocd.

I hope this is not reassurance seeking, I just never heard of this symptom with anxiety disorders.

Thank you all…

Markus

Edited July 23, 2021 by bahiano

[snowbear]

This proves the point that it's the interpretation we put on things which causes OCD.

Hearing voices is a relatively common anxiety symptom, not exclusive to schizophrenia at all. Also occurs in dementia, brain damage, some brain tumors... (Don't let that set you off on some hypochondria search for symptoms of other disorders!)

Your interpretation that 'hearing voices = schizophrenia' meant you latched onto this one sentence in the book and started to ruminate on it.

Stop the ruminating in its tracks. Let it go.

[bahiano]

Thanks @PolarBearfor clearing this up for me… it is just that i never heard of this symptom as a classic anxiety related symptom… i knew that hearing voices or hallucinations in general can be a symptom of many illnesses…but not anxiety

[Handy]

Hearing voices is pretty rare. Mostly people are hearing their thoughts. It consists of inner speech, where you can “hear” your own voice play out phrases and conversations in your mind. This is a completely natural phenomenon. Some people might experience it more than others. It's also possible not to experience internal monologue at all.

[snowbear]

4 hours ago, Handy said:

Hearing voices is pretty rare. Mostly people are hearing their thoughts.

Hearing voices is surprisingly common, Handy.

That said, even in schizophrenia it is your own thoughts you are hearing, but you interpret them as external voices. In extreme anxiety sometimes the same process occurs where the interpretation of the thoughts you hear is that it is other people's voices. The commonly held belief that 'hearing voices = schizophrenia'  and nothing else is where misunderstandings begin.

[bahiano]

True @snowbear hallucinations can occur to almost anybody, i knew that, but i would not consider it as the classic anxiety symptom, that was just my point...that confused me a bit, but it was my interpretation and the schiz-ocd that made me ruminate i guess, because in my mind hallucinations are equal being delusional or mad... which is not always the case...

[bahiano]

Unfortunately my OCD now latched on that "Maybe I am having hallucinations instead of intrusive thoughts" and put me in the rumination mode  

 

[bahiano]

As I am waiting for CBT to start, is it ok to start myself with the 4 Step method for my intrusive thoughts as mentioned above?

Or any other book CBT book recommendation? 

Thanks so much in advance

[snowbear]

12 hours ago, bahiano said:

Unfortunately my OCD now latched on that "Maybe I am having hallucinations instead of intrusive thoughts" and put me in the rumination mode  

 

Which just proves you can't 'solve' OCD with logic or knowledge. How you interpret your experience is what turns something normal into an obsession, which means you can make an issue of absolutely anything.

 

5 hours ago, bahiano said:

As I am waiting for CBT to start, is it ok to start myself with the 4 Step method for my intrusive thoughts as mentioned above?

Of course! There's no need to wait for therapy to begin. A therapist simply helps to guide you through the process, so use all the knowledge you've already gained from your CBT self-help books.

[bahiano]

@PolarBear Thank you so much, I learned so much from you  and everybody here in this forum, i will try to put it all in practice and let you know how it goes… bless you all!