I’ve recently had the revelation that for much of my life I’ve suffered from paranoia. I have to credit @SkinnyMe in part for this discovery, but also I stumbled onto the word “paranoia” in relation to an unmistakable episode I had the other week that lasted 90 min.
Rather than feeling helpless and hopeless about it, I feel empowered over the paranoia. By gum, now I recognize what that creature is! When it happens again, I should be able to know it for what it is and take steps to control it. What seems to work is taking a timeout to sit down and write some notes to myself; identify what thoughts I’m having are realistic and what are improbable. When I’m caught in public like this, then I’ll have to work out another way to talk sense into myself.
But it’s an expanded feeling to know now that for many years I’ve had these episodes. I don’t know if my ap helps with them or not. I’m actually guessing not, or not wholly. Still, just nailing it down with a word makes it more manageable.
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