Introduction
Have you ever had a thought so bizarre that you thought to yourself, “Where in the world did that come from!? I’ll just keep this little thought to myself so people don’t think I’m crazy.”
Unwanted thoughts & bizarre thoughts are something that most people experience. In fact, unwanted thoughts are so common and frequent to the human experience that most people quickly dismiss these thoughts and move on with their lives with little to no memory of the thought ever occurring.
However, this is not the experience of all people. There are those whose experience with unwanted thoughts is especially troubling to the degree that their experience with the unwanted thought seriously inhibits living an enjoyable God-pleasing life. Oftentimes these individuals are living under the weight of depression, PTSD, OCD, or various forms of anxiety. They want very badly to understand where these thoughts come from, and are even more desperate to rid themselves of troubling thoughts. Certainly, God’s word offers great help in responding to intrusive thoughts in a God-pleasing manner.
For a more developed approach to counseling OCD, check out my article Better Biblical Counseling for OCD
The purpose of this article is to help you better understand how intrusive thoughts originate and develop, specifically in the experience of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), and to offer some suggestions for how to provide biblical counsel in light of intrusive thoughts.
Defining Intrusive Thoughts
Not all unwanted thoughts are necessarily intrusive thoughts. When an unwanted thought becomes particularly sticky and troublesome it becomes known as an intrusive thought. An intrusive thought is characterized by three defining characteristics: (1) the thought is involuntary; (2) the thought is inconsistent with your beliefs & desires; and (3) the thought is recurrent to the point of causing distress.
Understanding the Birth & Development of Intrusive Thoughts
The first question that I would like to explore is, where do intrusive thoughts originate from and how do they develop? In other words, what is their life cycle?
Ian Osborne, MD. details the development of intrusive thoughts in his book on OCD titled, “Can Christianity Cure Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder?: A Psychiatrist Explores the Role of Faith in Treatment” Osborne outlines a four-stage development of an intrusive thought which I will briefly outline and comment on: 1
Step 1: “A normal anxiety-producing thought enters conscious awareness.”2
Osborne points out that anxiety-producing thoughts (unwanted thoughts) are normal, and not in and of themselves evidence of a mental health disorder. These kinds of thoughts happen because you live in a broken world with a broken body, and sometimes your brain considers broken things. In fact, research suggests that almost all people regularly experience thoughts that are troublesome. Oftentimes these thoughts are wildly inconsistent with one’s beliefs and desires. The reason that these thoughts are rarely addressed is because they are embarrassing in nature and are quickly dismissed and forgotten by the majority of people.
In my view, these normal anxiety-producing thoughts come in various shapes and sizes. There are at least three varieties of unwanted thoughts worth considering:
- Thoughts which are valid concerns, such as “did I turn off the stove?” or “am I certain I remembered to file my taxes?” or “did I lock the door to my house?”
- Thoughts which are unlikely or unreasonable concerns, such as “did stepping on that crack on the side-walk somehow taint the rest of my day?” or “was that tiny bump I felt while driving actually a human being that I unknowingly ran over?” or “if I don’t wash my hands for at least 35 seconds I’m going to transfer some deadly illness to my baby.”
- Thoughts which are bizarre and wildly inconsistent with your actual beliefs and desires.3 These thoughts may include, but are not limited to: harm to self, harm to others, various forms of sexual deviation and immorality, outlandish inappropriate social behavior, or blasphemy, just to name a few. An example of this kind of thought would be the new mom who experiences a thought of smothering her newborn baby. These kinds of thoughts are particularly troubling because they are inconsistent with the mother’s core beliefs and actual desires. In other words, the mother doesn’t actually desire to bring harm to her baby.
Step 2: “The anxiety-producing thought is evaluated abnormally.”4
Osborne argues that this second step in the formation of an intrusive thought is the critical moment in the development of OCD symptoms. It is critical because it marks the moment when a person developing OCD symptoms begins to assign an anxiety-producing thought special importance. Whereas the majority of people have the ability to immediately terminate an anxious-producing thought, and move on with their day, this is not the experience of those struggling with OCD.
For individuals who are prone to OCD symptoms there is believed to be something abnormal occurring in their brains which makes it incredibly difficult for them to dismiss a troublesome thought. As a result, the person experiencing a troublesome thought then interprets the stickiness of the thought in question as evidence that there is something legitimately wrong with them or in their environment which needs to be addressed.
Step 3: “The sufferer fights to get the thought out of mind.”5
When an intrusive thought enters one’s awareness it is natural for that individual to respond by striving to get that thought out of mind. This striving may look like the individual obsessively coming up with arguments as to why the intrusive thought is not valid or true to who they are. Because the brains of those experiencing OCD symptoms experience difficulty in terminating thoughts, there is an excessive degree of cognitive effort expended in an attempt to terminate an intrusive thought. In turn, the effort expended in terminating a thought is then perceived to be validation for the existence of the thought which is inappropriate.
In short, the excessive effort to get rid of the thought actually reinforces the thought as something to be legitimately fearful of.
Step 4: “The sufferer performs specific acts over and over in order to allay the anxiety caused by obsessions.”6
The burden of an intrusive thought is that it tends to result in an ever increasing amount of anxiety, which is felt in the mind and body. In an attempt to combat the discomfort of anxious feelings an individual will tend to drift toward compulsive behaviors. These compulsive behaviors can be internal, such as ruminations, or external in nature, such as avoidance, double-checking, or reassurance seeking.
While these compulsive responses are perceived to offer temporary relief, they unfortunately have the effect of reinforcing the ongoing presence of intrusive thoughts. The reason behind why compulsions reinforce the obsessive nature of intrusive thoughts is because further engrain that the thought is worth thinking and giving attention to.
It is like your brain says, “Look at all the effort we’re putting into combatting this thought! This thought must be super dangerous. We better keep a close eye on it to make sure it gets all of the attention and effort it deserves.”
In summary, an intrusive thought forms when a normal anxiety inducing thought enters one’s awareness and remains, likely, as a result of a deficiency in the way a person’s brain processes. The one experiencing the intrusive thought then strives to rid themselves of the thought by cognitively trying to put the thought out of their awareness, or by performing certain compulsive behaviors to help mitigate the problem. Unfortunately, it is widely believed that the brain perceives these efforts as validation for the presence of the thought.
A Biblical Counseling Response to Intrusive Thoughts
In my view, life dominating patterns of intrusive thoughts must be fought against in order for an individual to walk joyously with Christ. Further, I believe that there is incredible wisdom available in the Scriptures which can greatly help the sufferer find victory over their intrusive thoughts.
The counsel to follow is not a substitute or an alternative approach to seeking help from medical professionals, such as your doctor. The counsel which I am about to give is biblical counsel which should happen alongside what your doctor advises.
With this understood, I want to relay what I believe to be the two most important pieces of counsel to act upon when dealing with your own intrusive thoughts, or in counseling others with intrusive thoughts, in the realm of OCD.
- Normalize the Presence of Unwanted Thoughts
As stated earlier, anxiety inducing thoughts are common to all people. It is possible to have an unwanted thought and not perceive that thought to be reflective of what you really believe or actually desire. Likewise, it is also possible that an intrusive thought does not actually reflect what you believe. This distinction may seem obvious to you, but it is often not obvious to the one experiencing unwanted thoughts. It is common for those who are dealing with OCD to perceive their intrusive thoughts as evidence that they possess an identity which God forbids, and is inconsistent with who they really are or that they desire something that they don’t actually desire.
Your OCD counselee likely needs to be taught and reminded that there is no inherent meaning or value in an intrusive thought and that even intrusive thoughts are normal to the human experience. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 10:13, “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”
Intrusive thoughts are common to all people living in a sin broken world. This is not to say that they shouldn’t be pushed back against, but it is to say that the mere presence of an intrusive thought should not catch a believer off guard. The troublesome thought exists because we are beings with imaginations and often our imaginations consider the possibility of broken things, as a result of living in a sin-broken world.
This point is an important point to voice because the one experiencing intrusive thoughts needs to be reminded that they are not losing their mind and they are not crazy.
- Take the Intrusive Thought Captive: Awareness vs. Attention
As detailed above, an intrusive thought is born at the point that an anxiety-producing thought becomes unusually sticky (step 1 & 2). While you cannot prevent yourself from experiencing these kinds of suspicious and alarming thoughts, you can control how you respond to unwanted thoughts.
In 2 Corinthians 10:5 Paul implies that it is possible for the follower of Christ to take a thought captive. One of the ways to take a thought captive is by confining it in order to limit its destructive capability. This means that you have to prevent allowing an intrusive thought to advance from the mere awareness of a possibility to giving that anxiety-producing awareness any further attention.
Refusing to give an intrusive thought attention means that you do not allow yourself to act on the anxiety-producing thought once it appears in your awareness. Stated another way, you limit the attention you are giving an intrusive thought by refusing to attempt to solve the thought. You do not try to push it out of your brain, and you do not offer compulsive behaviors as a way of alleviating the distress caused by the intrusive thought.7
Within the framework of the four-step development of an intrusive thought put forth by Osborne, I am arguing that you cannot necessarily prevent step 1 and 2, but that you can prevent step 3 and 4 if you choose to not act on intrusive thoughts. You do not have to try and get these thoughts out of your brain (step 3) and you do not have to complete compulsions in response to their presence (step 4).
When you give an unwanted thought attention, you are telling your brain that the thought belongs. A pithy way to capture this dynamic is the statement, “When you feed the thought, your brain thinks you need the thought.” So, don’t feed the thought.
As you starve unwanted and intrusive thoughts, they lose their teeth and power over you. This takes time and it is incredibly uncomfortable, but the way out from underneath the burden of intrusive thoughts is uncomfortable.
Conclusion
Intrusive thoughts don’t just appear out of nowhere. They have an origin and they develop over time. These thoughts can be downright scary and exhausting to the ones who live with them.
The good news is that the Bible provides excellent wisdom for the believer to move forward in obedience and victory in Christ. As discussed above, it is essential to understand that these thoughts are common to the human struggle of living in a sin-cursed world with a sin-cursed body and brain. Also, it is essential to starve these thoughts of the food they deserve.
Where should you get started in seeking help with intrusive thoughts? Talk to your doctor, talk to your pastor, and talk to your God-loving friends to find the support you need. There is hope in Christ and His grace!
Credits
Photo by Silvio Kundt on Unsplash
- Osborne, Ian. Can Christianity Cure Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder?: A Psychiatrist Explores the Role of Faith in Treatment (Grand Rapids: Brazos) 2008. pgs. 112-115.
↩︎ - Osborne, 112-113.
↩︎ - In secular psychology intrusive thoughts are often referred to as ego-dystonic thoughts, which is a phrase rooted in Freudian thought.
↩︎ - Osborne, 113.
↩︎ - Osborne, 113-114.
↩︎ - Osborne, 114-115.
↩︎ - Greenberg, Michael. “How to Stop Ruminating.” Michael Greenberg, Ph.D., https://drmichaeljgreenberg.com/how-to-stop-ruminating/. Accessed 12 June 2024.
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