Rumination: Disrupting Obsessive Thoughts
It’s normal and healthy for us to try to process our experiences emotionally, but sometimes during that process we find ourselves getting stuck on the same painful memory, anxiety, or disturbing thought. This frustrating experience, known as rumination, is a common psychological challenge that is both discouraging and unhelpful.
On this episode of Being Well, Dr. Rick Hanson and I spell out what rumination is, where it comes from, and how it functions in the brain. We then explore what practices and strategies we can use to identify rumination when it comes up and move through it compassionately and effectively.
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Key Topics:
0:00: Introduction
2:25: How do we define rumination?
7:45: What do we get out of rumination?
13:30: Distinguishing rumination from grieving
16:30: Where rumination comes from in people
18:40: The default mode network
22:30: Ways to disengage the default mode network
25:50: Strange attractors, Krishna, and the Gopis
30:35: Thought acceptance and noting
33:15: Recurring themes of your rumination
37:10: Novelty
38:45: Self-constructing invites rumination, self-acceptance undermines it
47:05: A quick walkthrough for dealing with a negative thought
53:00: Recap
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