Anti-Rumination strategies
March 25th, 2008Rumination as a digestive disorder is the bringing up of partially digested food and re-chewing it. Sounds disgusting, doesn’t it? For the black dog it is the bringing up of partially digested thoughts & experiences and re-chewing them in a negative light. Disgusting deja-vu all over again. It is spinning your thoughts as only a black dog can.
One of the most difficult things for me to deal with has been rumination. Like so many things the black dog brings with it, rumination creeps up on you without you even being aware of it. Like a mouse in an exercise wheel we jump on and keep spinning thoughts and memories about the real or imagined ‘bad’ things that have happened. We go over the lover who swore everlasting unconditional love but left or the spouse who doesn’t understand you, the job you lost, the bills you owe, the family member you’re on the outs with, even the guy who cut you off in traffic & then had the nerve to flip you off! Whatever it is we’ll spit it up and re-chew it, endlessly.
Here’s a list of practices that can help combat rumination.
- Set aside time to actively think about & write down the things that are bothering you. Do it during the day - not at bedtime! Set a timer and when it goes off, get up and distract yourself with another activity.
- When you find yourself ruminating tell yourself, “Stop, now isn’t the time for worry. I’ll think about this during my ‘ruminating’ time.”
- Don’t watch, read or listen to movies, shows, books, or music that sparks painful memories.
- Exercise - is an excellent way to combat stress which when you think about it is really just over thinking / ruminating about your life.
- Practice mindful meditation - this will help develop the habit of observing your thoughts without judgment or attachment.
- Socialize - Avoid being alone for long periods of time. When you’re engaging in conversation/activities with others it’s difficult to brood.
- Distraction - When you find yourself ruminating, go for a walk, look at something in your environment and notice its shape, color, etc. Become aware of the sounds around you - you don’t have to identify them, just hear them. Relax in your awareness. Do the same with your other senses - touch, smell & taste. Take some raisins or other food and really look at them, feel them, smell them, taste them, etc. Don’t gulp it, slow down and enjoy it.
Have some anti-rumination strategies to add? Post them in a comment.
Here’s some interesting links - enjoy.
Probing the depression-rumination cycle
March 26th, 2008 at 9:47 am
Thanks for writing about this - it’s the single element of TLC that’s the most difficult for me. I find myself ruminating even when I’m busy working or exercising, even while reading or watching a movie! Argh!! I recently started a new strategy to retrain my brain - I’m trying to use sound as a cue to bring me back to the present moment. It could be any sound - a passing car, the neighbor kids playing, the crash of trash cans, the jingle of my cat’s bell - then I close my eyes and listen closely to identify every single sound in my immediate surroundings, including my breath. Then I return to whatever I was doing before my mind had gone spinning off. So far, it’s working pretty well.
March 26th, 2008 at 1:51 pm
Great post. I think a lot of people think that depressed people don’t do much but be sad. But I have found that rumination (along with obsessive behaviors) is a red flag that someone is depressed. Spending a lot of time in one’s head is not healthy. As Faith said, learning to curve the rumination is a part of TLC. Being kind to ourselves and with our thoughts.
During the day I am fine, but I ruminate when I wake up in the middle of the night. Oh yeah, like the mouse on the exercise wheel. Sleep is so paramount to my sanity. I have to be especially careful the next day after a night of rumination. It can get ugly.
Any suggestions?
March 27th, 2008 at 12:17 pm
I think one of the problems with ruminating is that we believe that if we think about something enough then we can fix or solve it - or at least understand it better.
If we actually sat down with pencil and paper and went through the cognitive therapy exercise of 1. Stating the problem (i.e. my daughter won’t talk to me) 2. My belief about it (she MUST talk to me or it’s horrible and I can’t stand it!) 3. The emotional consequence (depression & anxiety). 4. Disputing this belief (people, including daughters, sometimes behave in ways that don’t make sense & we don’t like. There is no rule or law that says they must behave a certain way.) 5. New belief (I strongly prefer that my daughter and I have a good relationship. If she doesn’t want to talk, it’s unfortunate but not devastating.) 6. New emotional consequence (Concern for my daughter, appropriate sadness).
Unfortunately we don’t usually do this. Rumination gets us stuck at #2 & 3!
I think limiting rumination to writing it out helps, followed up by distraction - like paying attention to sounds to bring you back to the present!
March 29th, 2008 at 3:43 pm
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May 8th, 2008 at 4:03 pm
I used to drive myself crazy with my ruminations. I’ve gotten much better over the years. I work hard to keep my mind free of this trash. When I do go down this path these days I usually stop quickly, laugh at my silliness and STOP. I am for ever mindful of what is going on in my head. If I’m not, then I end where I used to be a lot……..the trash, which is never nice.
May 9th, 2008 at 4:22 am
“forever mindful” I like that. Do you just tell yourself to stop or do you do something to distract yourself?
August 14th, 2008 at 3:38 pm
One thing that helps me get out of the rumination loop is a religious hymn that I keep repeating. Affirmation would work as well.