When Your Mind Feels Like It’s Working Against You: Understanding Intrusive Thoughts
By: Growth Era Counseling & Wellness
If you’ve ever had a thought pop into your mind that felt disturbing, scary, or completely out of character, you’re not alone—and you’re not broken.
Intrusive thoughts are one of the most misunderstood mental health experiences. They can feel alarming, shame-inducing, and isolating, especially when no one talks about them openly. Many people silently wonder, “What does this say about me?”
The truth is: intrusive thoughts are a common human experience. What matters most isn’t the thought itself—but how your mind responds to it.
What Are Intrusive Thoughts?
Intrusive thoughts are unwanted, involuntary thoughts, images, or urges that feel distressing or upsetting. They often arrive suddenly and without warning.
These thoughts:
Do not reflect your character, values, or intentions
Are experienced by people with and without mental health diagnoses
Can involve a wide range of themes
The more important something is to you—your safety, your relationships, your values—the more likely your brain may latch onto it with intrusive thoughts.
Common Types of Intrusive Thoughts
Intrusive thoughts can take many forms, including:
Harm-related thoughts (fear of accidentally or intentionally causing harm)
Relationship doubts (“What if I don’t really love them?”)
Health anxiety thoughts (fear of illness or sudden death)
Identity-based doubts (“What if this thought means something about who I am?”)
What makes these thoughts so distressing isn’t their content—it’s how seriously the brain treats them.
Why Do Intrusive Thoughts Happen?
Intrusive thoughts are closely tied to the brain’s threat-detection system. Your brain’s job is to keep you safe, not happy. Sometimes, it does this by scanning for “what if” scenarios—even unlikely or irrational ones.
Factors that can increase intrusive thoughts include:
High stress or anxiety
Major life transitions (parenthood, loss, relationship changes)
Sleep deprivation
Hormonal changes
Ongoing exposure to fear-based media or social stress
The problem isn’t having the thought—it’s when the brain interprets it as urgent or dangerous.
Postpartum Intrusive Thoughts: A Common but Overlooked Experience
For many new mothers, intrusive thoughts begin or intensify after birth. These thoughts are often infant-focused and can be terrifying.
Examples include fears of:
Your baby being injured or dying
Accidental harm during caregiving
Losing control and harming your baby
Being an unfit or unsafe parent
These thoughts often come with intense shame and fear, making them difficult to talk about.
Here’s what’s important to know:
At least 70% of new moms experience intrusive thoughts about infant harm
These thoughts are symptoms—not desires or intentions
They do not mean you will act on them
They often increase with anxiety, OCD, or postpartum depression
Intrusive thoughts after birth are deeply distressing—but they are also very treatable.
Intrusive Thoughts and OCD
For some people, intrusive thoughts become especially “sticky” and distressing due to Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD).
OCD targets what you care about most. If you deeply value safety, love, morality, or responsibility, OCD may generate thoughts that directly contradict those values. That’s why intrusive thoughts can feel so convincing and upsetting.
What keeps the cycle going isn’t the thought—it’s the response:
Reassurance seeking
Mental reviewing
Avoidance
Googling for certainty
Trying to “prove” the thought isn’t true
Ironically, the more you fight or suppress intrusive thoughts, the more powerful they become.
How Therapy Helps You Break the Cycle
At Growth Era Counseling & Wellness, therapy for intrusive thoughts is compassionate, collaborative, and evidence-based.
Therapy can help you:
Understand why intrusive thoughts happen
Learn to respond without fear or self-blame
Reduce anxiety and emotional distress
Separate thoughts from identity and intent
Build trust in yourself and your values
Approaches may include:
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) to change how you relate to thoughts
Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) for intrusive thought OCD
Mindfulness and acceptance-based strategies
Trauma-informed care when intrusive thoughts are connected to past experiences
We offer virtual therapy for adults in Connecticut, making support accessible during postpartum recovery, busy schedules, or emotionally overwhelming seasons.
You Are More Than Your Thoughts
Having intrusive thoughts does not mean you are dangerous, broken, or untrustworthy. It means your brain is trying—clumsily—to protect what matters most to you.
You don’t need to silence your mind to heal. You need support, understanding, and tools that help you stop taking every thought so seriously.
You Don’t Have to Navigate This Alone
If intrusive thoughts are impacting your daily life, sleep, relationships, or sense of safety, help is available.
At Growth Era Counseling & Wellness, we support adults across Connecticut through virtual therapy focused on anxiety, OCD, postpartum mental health, and intrusive thoughts. You deserve relief—and you deserve to feel safe in your own mind.
Contact us today to schedule a confidential consultation and begin reclaiming your peace.