weird thoughts come up and I react automatically

[Ales2]

I noticed something weird about myself the other day and wonder if anyone else has had a similar experience. When I was flipping through channels on the Tv or a magazine, I would see something that triggered a thought that goes away almost as quickly as I think it. I actually have to turn back to the page/channel to get the thought back.  I also noticed this once while hugging my cat. I think of something and then I quickly put him down, because my thinking tells me I have to do something else. Here is the kicker - its almost automatic - and a couple of times I'll go back to the cat or the tv and sit back down and start over. I'm feeling some kind of emotion that makes me change what I am doing....yet I can't really remember what thought starts the action. Its a little creepy. Anyone have a similar experience? I often wonder if this is me getting in touch with some unconscious, subconscious things or just a random event.  ( I also noticed this happens when I overeat - no surprise there!)

All thought and comments are greatly appreciated.

[sKePTiKal]

I don't know if this is the same thing or not, Ales.

But, when my anxiety levels go past a certain point (and there doesn't have to be a reason for it)... my brain starts to get into a sort of ADHD race. I'll forget where I was going and what I was going to do. I'll be in the middle of doing something - folding clothes, writing a check - and rush off to do something else before I finished "thing 1". Next thing I know - I'm trying to do 10 things all at once and the circuit board in my brain starts to smoke until all circuits are fused together and nothing in my head "works" until I've withdrawn into reading usually, with a side helping of nibbly snacks...

if I see this pattern starting, I simply slow everything down and force myself to do thing 1 all the way to the end. Sometimes I miss it; sometimes I catch it in time.

[Ales2]

Interesting - I've done that too, I just always thought that when my list is too big, I get scared that I cant get everything done, so I dive in and start everything, but finish nothing. My problem seems to be more with delayed gratification - I learned growing up that I would never get any approval for anything, so anything thats a lot of work just isnt worth doing. We never got any credit for doing anything long term (college for example), so none of us bothered. 
Thanks for your input - its a very interesting observation.

[SilverLining]

It looks like a good observation of how the mind typically works.  First there's some kind of stimulus.  Then the mind goes off on some sort of tangent based on unconscious memories and connections.  Before you know it the emotions go along and you feel happy/depressed/sad with no understanding of how you got to that place.  Then the automatically started emotions can snowball into a full blown crisis or state of elation.   

I'm not sure if it's worth looking for substance in the specific thoughts and connections.  But seeing the process can be a major breakthrough.  It's a step toward taking the automatic processes of mind less seriously.  You can just watch the automatic thoughts like clouds passing through the sky. 

[Ales2]

Thanks SIlver Lining - you definitely came up with something interesting.  Its interesting to me to see how quickly I feel something or think something I am not even really that aware of that makes me change my direction and actions almost immediately, most of the time without recognizing why. I pay much more attention to it now than I used to. And, my little cat has figured out something is amiss.... when it happens he kind of looks at me with a smirk and an expression that says what did I do?

Also, in my post I said that 

We never got any credit for doing anything long term (college for example), so none of us bothered. 

. While its true we never got credit ( I never even went to my own college graduation, nor did my parents, they also never gave me anything for completing my degree when everyone else I knew got nice gifts, expensive watches or cars or trips to Europe - and my parents were very wealthy so money was not an issue) both my brother and I did finish our degrees. But not getting any credit made me think twice about pursuing anything else.....