If you mean "paranoia" of the beautiful variety, first you get rid of the inflammatory term "paranoia" for this impulse. Like anything, its up to the individual to use it appropriately and to not rely on it to the point of dismissing facts, but it is also your duty to allow it healthy expression -- and in time, define "the phenomena known as paranoia" for yourself. People that don't understand the way a schizoid's mind works puts you down with words like "paranoia". Even "schizoid" is a derogatory word. I'm proud of my tribe.
I've tried to help many people to the best of my ability because I go through it myself. However, I still haven't found a solution. Some may say that you should seek medication, but I'm a firm believer in trying to solve your problems without the use of chemicals - you'll only become dependent and won't learn how to support yourself on your own. As an alternative, here's what you can do to try to alleviate your anxiety: 1. Watch your diet. Drugs and caffeine (and sugar) can fuck you up a good deal, especially when you're already anxious. You should try to eliminate these from your diet, at least excess of it. If you are still paranoid without the drugs and sugar, then this may not the source of your anxiety. However, it certainly doesn't help! Paranoid person + paranoia inducing drugs = very, very bad. 2. Find a way to calm yourself. Deep breathing will do wonders for you if you're hyperventilating - as stupid as it sounds. The faster you inhale and exhale, the less oxygen you really get. You'll soon feel light-heated and if it gets worse enough you might faint - which is embarrassing. So, take deep breaths and that should definitely help. I find that meditation works for me. It's just about the most calming thing I can think of. When you start to feel paranoid, do whatever you need to do to feel safe. If this means curling up in a ball in a fetal position, or baracading yourself in your closet, so be it. The safer you feel, the sillier the idea of your irrational fears finding and or hurting you will be. If it makes you feel better, find some way to express those paranoid feelings, either through art, music, or writing. I know that when I'm visualizing bad case scenarios that relate to my paranoia (I have OCD as well), I write it out. I write down everything that I'm worried would happen in that certain situation so that I'm focusing on writing more than anything else. And even though I'm shaking during the whole thing, I eventually calm down. 3. Find people you can trust. If you have friends, parents, and maybe even teachers that know of your situation and care for you, they can help you and protect you. If you're spazzing out about something you can text a friend, and they'll talk you through your fear. Just having someone to tell you that "No, I highly doubt you'll ever be in a secret society and have to try to convince others that you know of some conspiracy and no one believes you and then send you to an asylum" can sometimes eliminate a panic attack from happening. I have a few teachers that I'll go to to hide in their class room and they're totally cool with it. Talk with your trusted friends about your paranoia. Opening up always heals the soul, I've learned, and letting those paranoid feelings out will make you feel understood and not so alone with your problems. Also, it further improves your trust in that person. After you've learned what helps during your fearful times, you will become more prepared for your attacks. Handling these fears won't necessarily make them go away forever. However, you will be more healthy and knowledgeable of how to manage yourself independently - without your friends (should you find yourself alone) and without the help of medication. Hope this makes you feel better! Send me a message if you need to!
By far the best advise i've come accross for dealing with repetitive destructive or negative thought patterns like paranoid thinking was given to me by Eckhart tolle in his books 'The power of now' and 'A new earth'. It hinges on the precepts of meditation ... that we can observe our thoughts and simply let them pass without paying any heed to them, .. without giving them importance, .. without identifying with them and hence not giving them power in our psyche. - They're just thoughts. Most thinking is just habitual and doesn't really mean mutch in the sense of who you really are but if one is always thinking negatively and fearfully then one is always percieving the world in a negative light/through a negative lens and creating an unhappy reality for oneself ... it's just a loop that tends to repeat itself. So the idea is to break the habit, the loop, the chain of thought which keeps you stuck in it. So it's like reconditioning the mind. So how do we stop thinking? - We do something else with our awareness instead. Eckhart suggests moving our awareness to our body among other things. Feel your arms and legs and torso, look at your body briefly, feel the sensation of your body and of being in your body ... feel the life and warmth ...feel that buzzy feeling. Feel inside your body ... the depth inside you. Breath and feel the breath flow in and out and feel your body breath. Feel into it. Don't think about it, just feel. Feeling is like listening and when we feel and listen our awareness is expanded and we come more into the moment ... our awareness focused on now. All this takes us out of our thinking mind. No thinking = no paranoia. Do this more and more and slowly but surely, repetitive thought patterns begin to dissolve. Stay in contact with your body and whenever you remember ...and you can do it anytime you like ..at work or lying in bed at night to place some of your awareness in your body. It instantly takes you out of the grip of thinking. Also use your senses. When i'm walking to work i just look around at everything .. just seeing what's there ... not thinking about it but just observing it ... letting it all enter my eyes and my awareness, i listen to the cars, birds and other noises come and go and enjoy the rich smell of morning. So by doing this i become present in my environment, i'm paying attention and not lost in thought and missing it all. And this is what it's all about ... not getting lost in thought.
they techno your messages box is full can u clear it? i want to ask u sumthing about one of your last threads??
Greet it with open arms, charming smile and positive attitude. "Come hither, paranoia, for you are part of me!" Happily admit to all, including yourself, that you are gone mad and paranoid. This way paranoia may personally like you , may even leave you alone, or ,at very least,you will feel results of positive attitude and feel a lot better at dealing with it. All the best
