Overthinking and obsessing

[sbsi908]

Hey, I'm quite new to this and I decided to join as my anxiety has been an on and off issue for nearly 9 years severely.

i have a very bad issue with obsessing and overthinking things when it comes to certain things like spirits/ghosts/demons/paranormal etc.

i have always had a secret strong fear of anything paranormal, and have had a couple of experiences through out my life that still remain unexplained, but recently I had an experience that made me break down so badly for the first time in 4 years...

i was on holidays with my partner who lives interstate, which was meant to be a time for me to finally relax and enjoy my time. So far, this year has had my anxiety at some new levels, and as of recent I have been severely anxious of my health. we stayed at a hotel, first night was great, I was so happy to be with him. My anxiety was the lowest it had been in a while, until the morning after the second night, I woke up and got out of the shower to him finding a few scratches on my body that look like cat scratches... he didn't really care so much and laughed it off thinking nothing of it, until I instantly became severely paranoid...

all of a sudden, my whole world just twisted, and thoughts of what reality is and what's real and what's not hit me, and of course, I googled it.. "waking up with scratches". It came up with many many things of paranormal discussion which set my anxiety through the roof, and I felt so severely disturbed.

Now, I could have been like most people and figured; I have very dry skin in the winter, I scratch easily, I bruise easily, etc. but no, I questioned everything, and for the next 2 days my partner was trying to settle me down about it until I had a huge panic attack and broke down crying hysterically for the first time in years... (I almost never ever cry). It was really intense, and I was that bothered that I actually asked my family and friends if they've ever experienced the same thing, and my sister and father said they have, by scratching themselves in their sleep, but that didn't settle me, as I'm an over thinker.

i am now suffering severe anxiety over the fact that maybe "what if it is paranormal?". That would be the biggest nightmare to me...

i can't help it, and i don't know what to believe anymore. And like I said earlier, I'm a huge skeptic on these things, so I've always been one to question things until I have a rational explanation.

i hope somebody can relate to this similarly.

thank you.

[MissBenthos]

Hey there sbsi908,

I have never had one of these unexplained occurrences but like you, the paranormal is something scary for me. My partner is the opposite, he's all science - if there's no proof it doesn't exist! One time when I bought up ghosts he said people make things up in their minds, if they see something out of the corner of their eye, bam, it's a ghost, when really it was something blowing in the wind. The more we convince ourselves that it wasn't something normal the more we believe that and our memory of the event becomes skewed. His explanation made me look at things more logically.

Your experiences are probably not going to allow you to stop believing so I'm wondering what type of occurrences the others were and what makes you fear the paranormal? Do you think something would hurt you?

[Doolhof]

Hi sbsi908,

My spiritual experiences are totally different from yours. I am a Christian and have beliefs of the spirit world. Thankfully for me, my experiences have mainly been about the joyfulness, peace and serenity of God and His loving presence.

This is my belief. I know everyone has a right to their own beliefs. I am just wondering if when you are spooked by the negative paranormal, can you call on someone or something more powerful and positive than the dark elements to help you through?

Could you picture a bright, warm glow in your mind, or a strong loving presence that would over power the darkness?

Would you consider talking to a counsellor or therapist of some kind, they may be able to ease your mind and help you understand what you are feeling.

It does sound like you are struggling with these issues. Would you consider calling a minister of religion to discuss how you are feeling? You never know, they may be able to provide you with answers as well. Not all of them will be wanting to convert you on the spot.

These are just some thoughts that have come to mind. You do not need to act on any of them if they make you uncomfortable.

Cheers for now from Dools

[sbsi908]

Thanks for getting back to me.

i think your husband is right; the logical world makes more sense than the spiritual world. But I'm so skeptical and question everything. I've always sat on the fence of things since I'm so open minded.

the other experiences I had were when I was only 14, I had some unusual activity happen around me that was pretty scary, but at that age I didn't care that much.

my fear is something might hurt me, something might kill me or make my life already much harder than it currently is.

Reckon I woke up to scratches because I could've done them myself? Or maybe my partner did it? maybe something scratched me the day before and I didn't notice it?

[Sandradee]

Hi sbsi908!

I haven't experienced anything paranormal exactly, but I do agree with Doolhof. I have had dreams where I felt a negative presence. And what got rid of that presence was me calling out to Jesus Christ in my dream. I remember screaming it out over and over - the words would barely come out - but when they did, that presence left me. I did this because I knew that He would protect me.

If you believe in negative spirits, I feel like you need something greater than all of that - which is Jesus Christ. I'm not sure if you practice any religion - but this is something that helped me when I used to have a couple of bad dreams where I felt it was more than just that.

I would encourage you to call out to Him next you feel you are in a situation where things seem a bit hard for you. It may also help to understand it from a religious point of view.

Either way - if you are interested I'm happy to share more of my thoughts and opinions regarding this.

But - ultimately in this situation, I'm pretty sure you either accidentally scratched yourself - or your partner did it and you have nothing to worry over! The above is just a source of comfort if it continues to play on your mind.

[MissBenthos]

Sorry for my slow reply, I lost your post for a while because it moved sections.

My assumption is that the scratches would have happened from the day before or movement in your sleep. That's not necessarily going to make you feel less scared though. Have you ever been to a psychologist about this? I think you need to find something that will ease your fear and a psych will be able to help you through it. Whether that's something spiritual like the others have suggested, adjusting the way you think about these things or something else like learning self-defence techniques. I have even heard of people being hypnotized out of their fear of spiders. I'm sure there are heaps of ways for you to beat those paranormal monsters back in their place, it's just about finding the method that works for you.