Egosyntonic & Egodystonic

Sometimes the things I think about are because I value them or desire them.
Sometimes the things I think about are because I don't value them or desire them.
What the heck? Find out the difference between two important terms.
Content is provided for informational purposes only, not medical or treatment advice; follow the treatment plan developed or you by your clinician. Don't have a clinician? Try Justin K. Hughes, MA, LPC.

[@ellak8240]

I really appreciate you mentioned the compulsion of watching these types of videos \ research. I've never heard anyone mention that before, that's very validating.

[@justinkhugheslpc]

Absolutely! It's important to mention and thanks for calling out the importance of it. I try to be careful both in my words and content creation on the topic of reassurance. Anything can be reassurance for someone, it depends on how they use it. However, helping people identify if they're helping someone rack up views on CZcams because of their disorder is an important act of kindness. :) Have a great day!

[@deepstariaenigmatica2601]

Thanks so much. I can relate to this. I feel like a horrible person for some of my intrusive thoughts sometimes :( even tho I don't desire them to happen or anything.

[@justinkhugheslpc]

Thanks for the kind words- so glad this helped. As the old saying goes, "If I had a nickel for every time someone said that...." Very common sentiments. There are lots of other places that talk about them, but here's one of my favs: adaa.org/learn-from-us/from-the-experts/blog-posts/consumer/unwanted-intrusive-thoughts
Blessings, Justin

[@Anigmus_]

It just hit me tonight that I’m dealing not with an egodystonic thought but an egodystonic emotion. tl;dr I broke up with my girlfriend of 1 year before I left for college. I knew she wasn’t the one. I always thought she was pretty, but didn’t really feel a deep emotional connection. As I’m back in my room again for the first time I’m experiencing incredibly powerful urges to dive back into that world and invite her over. I’m 100% certain that this is not what I want, yet I’m experiences these powerful feelings (not all lust) to re-engage emotionally in a relationship that I don’t existentially desire. I’m almost laughing at my body for feeling this way. It’s really strange. Sitting in this chair like “wtf why is your stomach flipping this is silly 😂”. I’ve experienced plenty of egodystonic thoughts, but this was a new experience for me

[@justinkhugheslpc]

Thank you so much for sharing! That's very insightful to notice that emotions/feelings can also not fit with what you actually believe. Have a great day!

[@keegunsantel945]

For me, you explained ocd like a listening party. Ocd has been proposed as an effect of mental illness, and not a mechanism for social interaction.