# Cant think normally



## sammydabull (Apr 23, 2007)

I feel like I have to force my self to think, like I cant just do it automaticly, like whats up with this? Also, I mess things up when I speak somtimes, like verbs and tence, and i find it really hard to string together sentences and have conversations... is anyone else like this? And could this be realated to OCD, and some sort of obbsesion that i cant think straight, so intern, i dont think straight?


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## MidnightRambler (May 5, 2007)

yeah, i get that a lot. just today i asked my dad, "did you get the color?" when i meant "did you get the phone number?" (i'm not ususally THAT bad, though. i only do it once in a while). sometimes i have a hard time speaking, like i have a momentary lapse of memory and all functioning. i'm not sure why it happens, but you're not the only one to experience it.


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## Dreamland (Jun 1, 2005)

Perfectly normal with DP, anxiety, and depression, You're not losing your mind, but instead, your mind is so clouded and eclipsed by anxiety and DP that it becomes harder to conceptualize things mentally. Think of it this way.....if I throw a smoke bomb / device in your living room you 'll have a hard time seeing your furniture, TV, wall art, etc., but it's all there and nothing has really changed. DP and anxiety gums up the atmosphere in a similar way.


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## jimmyb (May 9, 2007)

Yea, I was really tired this week (started a new job + late nights - oops). Sometimes you look at people and think you recognise them too. I saw a couple of people that look similar to my mates and I had to take a second look to see if it was them. My memory and intuallect is appauling too! Concentration etc.


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## jimmyb (May 9, 2007)

Also who feels that in the thick of it you can't target things properly with your eyes. Sometimes, I feel myself looking in the gerneral direction of things and then my eyes quickly move around until I find what I'm looking for, its like mental tension. Occasionally if someone in a group of mates is talking I look up at the wrong person. This has been less apparent recently as I think it was related to my breathing and anxiety which is reducing slowly now.


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## 17545 (Feb 14, 2007)

I definitely notice problems with my eyes. It's hard to explain, though.


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## jimmyb (May 9, 2007)

They just flick about sometimes uncontrollably, probably due to the fact that it doesn't feel like your looking at anything. It is getting better though, worse when I'm tired or trying to concentrate really hard.


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## nemesis (Aug 10, 2004)

I suffer in a similar way. At times I feel unable to concentrate on any given object, with my eyes darting from one seemingly random place to another. This is most notable when I'm driving as I'll often become distracted and look at pointless objects (McDonalds signs etc) which constantly remove my focus from the cars in front and around me.

I also have difficulty structuring my thoughts in conversation, usually ending up with me talking too fast, improperly annunciating my words (slurring) and rambling with uninsightful tripe that no one really wants to hear. Sadly the more this happens, the more sensitive I appear to become about the problem, and the less likely I am to speak in public.

Finally, along with the problems concentrating and the problems speaking, I also suffer with a poor memory. I'm sure however that this is due to what they call an encoding issue, or 'not really concentrating properly at the time the memory was being laid down' as I can recall events that happened during happy times in my life.

I'm certain anxiety plays a large role in perpetuating these symptoms as I seem to function somewhat normally when I 'forget to be anxious', this normally happens in social situations or when I am distracted by something novel. Given some time to myself however, the symptoms come back in at full strength, the ruminations fire up, the vale of DP descends and I begin to start freaking out that I may be suffering from the negative symptoms of schizophrenia with a fully blown psychotic attack shortly on its way. No family member has ever suffered from it, and I've been suffering in this way for over 10 years without the feared psychosis actually developing, so I'm not too sure of why I fear it so much.

Still, at this point I'll begin to think back through time, pondering if the symptoms have slowly become worse or better, and I'll work myself up into a frenzy where I feel unable to concentrate or function for days at time until it seems I'm barely able to take another day, and suddenly my mood will change and I'll be all right. It's almost as if something inside has decided that I have ruminated enough, and I cease to think about it and I'm again able to get on with my job and life, and then the cycle repeats.

So in a very long round-a-bout way, yes, I do suffer from concentration, memory and speech issues .


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## sammydabull (Apr 23, 2007)

Wow, you feel everything that i feel, do you also every have trouble remembering things like words, names of objects, and peoples nameswhen you need them most? this is common for me.


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## nemesis (Aug 10, 2004)

Yep, I'm terrible with people's names, especially when I'm tired or feeling stressed. There have even been a couple of times when I've baulked on remembering the names of people I've worked with 4 or more years.


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## jimmyb (May 9, 2007)

memory is a funny one. I have problems with my memory and intellect as well its not good!


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## Digitalbath (Aug 13, 2004)

i never had a day since i got dp that i was thinking straight at all. now its just a matter of how to make myself believe and assure myself that these absurd thoughts are just part of dp and that im not going crazy... especially at night when my mind just goes into a burst of random thoughts and sensations which doesn;t even mean anything at all, like in REM when im awake... its really tough, but ive had this for years and im getting used to it. ull get used to it too i guess.


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## Pollyanna 3098 (Dec 12, 2006)

I believe this is all related to anxiety, It takes a lot of organization to structure your speech. An anxious mind is an unorganised mind.

3098


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## nemesis (Aug 10, 2004)

> I believe this is all related to anxiety, It takes a lot of organization to structure your speech. An anxious mind is an unorganised mind.


There could be a lot of truth to this. I do seem to be able to speak a lot more clearly when I'm utterly tired. I night without sleep seems to slow me down to the point where I can start putting thoughts in order.


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## jimmyb (May 9, 2007)

Correct. When your anxious you can't flow, body, speech, thoughts, emotions.

Everything comes to a grinding halt.


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