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HappyPaul
Tufted Titmouse
Joined: May 07, 2006
Age: 46
Posts: 35
Location: Canada
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 Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 10:45 pm Post subject: Rumination |
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Hi:
I started seeing a Therapist about a Month ago (Depression) and she has introduced me to a variant of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy called "Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy". They talk a lot about "Rumination" which I guess is turning something over and over again in your mind. I said to my therapist one day that I wondered if Aspie-style obsession is a double-edged sword; the happy obsession about making a remastered ISO of DreamLinux for example, would have its unhappy corollary in Ruminating about your Boss criticizing you at work. Do many of you out there suffer from Rumination?
Paul |
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claire333
Huh?
Joined: Jun 20, 2008
Posts: 1893
Location: Lost in my own little world.
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| Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 10:56 pm Post subject: |
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Constantly. I have done it all my life. Most of the time it is no big deal. The only time it really bothers me is when I rumintae over other people's words...giving them different tones and inflections, therefore many different meanings. I never know what anyone really means. 
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On with the show...This is it. |
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MomofTom
Phoenix
Joined: Aug 06, 2006
Posts: 597
Location: Where normalcy and bad puns collide
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| Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 11:11 pm Post subject: |
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It is very difficult to let go of past wrongs or mistakes of myself or others.
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Apathy is a dominant gene. Mutate. |
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ChatBrat
Velociraptor
Joined: Feb 02, 2007
Posts: 429
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| Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2008 2:25 pm Post subject: Rumination |
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I ruminate A LOT. It bothers me but I can't stop it and no medicine helps it. It bothers me the most when I have said something that I think might have been taken the wrong way and I ruminate what I COULD HAVE/SHOULD HAVE have said. It also gets on my nerves when I am preparing to speak to someone and I rehearse minutes, hours and days beforehand. Like before I see a doctor or a friend or family member where I will have to explain something.
BTW: I haven't been diagnosed with AS but I am pretty sure I have it. |
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kclark
Velociraptor
Joined: May 11, 2007
Age: 27
Posts: 460
Location: NE Illinois
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| Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2008 3:08 pm Post subject: |
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Yeah I ruminate on things all the time. The same tool that can be used to analyze data from every possible angle also gets used to analyze goof ups and embarrassing moment non stop from many angles. It continuously goes over many slightly different approaches to starting a conversation, without helping me decide which one to use. I ruminate over asking some questions to my mom despite the answers not being of any benefit for me to know.
So yeah I ruminate on all sorts of things all day long. |
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AnnePande
Sea Gull
Joined: Jul 14, 2007
Age: 30
Posts: 235
Location: Aarhus, Denmark
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2008 9:44 am Post subject: |
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I think it's the same as what is usually called perseveration. I have never seen the word rumination used about it, but yes, I ruminate or perseverate sometimes.
It can be about what to say, or what I shouldn't have said, or about a certain topic that worries or annoys me, or a certain question that I turn around in my head a lot of time in different ways. And the longer I do it, the more difficult it is to stop. Even though I may know that I've got the answer already (or at least know how to get it), and don't need to think more about it, it just returns anyway.
Sometimes it can be about a positive thing; running through a pleasant dialog with another person, or a thought or saying I like, or something like that.
I like the word rumination about that, by the way... but don't think I would use that in a negative situation, but maybe in a positive, like meditating on something or such. |
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ooOoOoOAnaOoOoOoo
Phoenix
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Joined: Jun 19, 2008
Posts: 1762
Location: US, midmap
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2008 9:48 am Post subject: |
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| Oh yes. I definitely do that! |
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tharn
Toucan
Joined: Apr 22, 2008
Age: 29
Posts: 255
Location: Iowa
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2008 12:30 pm Post subject: |
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I used to do it so consistantly that it made me suicidal. If I messed up even the smallest thing - especially socially - or received any criticism at ALL, I'd relive it over and over, punishing myself. Obviously, this tendency made me less willing to interact with others socially, lest I make another error, further depriving me of friends who might help me snap out of the loop.
Here's what worked for me, and it might work for you. The key is you can't half-do this and expect it to work.
1. Recognize when you're ruminating.
2. Close your eyes and take a slow, deep breath. Really do this; it breaks the speed of the loop.
3. Say to yourself, "This loop doesn't go anywhere. It's a waste of time." This is true, of course. If there's something you need to do better, you should be actively focusing on developing that skill, not beating yourself up. If it was the sort of mistake all people are prone to - a social faux pas, a clumsy mishap, an uneducated choice - these things just happen by virtue of being learning, social beings. Do NOT ask yourself, "Do I deserve to feel bad like this?" That question is a red herring. It will hold you in the loop, and regardless of its answer, nothing will come of it.
4. Willfully distract yourself. In my case, I would chuckle to myself as though I were amused at my own clumsiness, until it became a sincere sentiment. And then I would go do something I found more enthralling and enjoyable. There just wouldn't be any room left in my head for the loop. As autistics, our ability to distract ourselves is a HUGE advantage here. Just switch to one of your favorite obsessions.  For me, it's my sketchbook, or aikido, or guitar. Soon enough, I'm on cloud nine, oblivious to whatever got me in the loop!
Also, advice from personal experience: Alcohol and rumination... BAD MIX. It's a good way to end up on a first-name basis with a bottle of asprin and a razor blade. |
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Greentea
Bull in China Shop par Excellence!
Joined: Jun 15, 2007
Posts: 2528
Location: Middle East
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2008 12:50 pm Post subject: |
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Yep, me too.
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"It is the wounded oyster that mends its shell with pearl" - Ralph Waldo Emerson |
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kclark
Velociraptor
Joined: May 11, 2007
Age: 27
Posts: 460
Location: NE Illinois
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2008 3:40 pm Post subject: |
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Excellent advice tharn.
While a controlled rumination or meditation on something positive could be a good thing, constantly going over and over bad or negative things is terrible for you.
It takes some work as I tend not to notice that I am stuck on something. Lately have been getting much better and it is like popping yourself out of a rut when you realize you are focusing on something without reason and use those techniques to work your way out of it. With practice I seem to be able to notice me heading towards those though ruts and able to mentally swerve around them. This has done wonders with my mood and anxiety levels and I can get things done instead of getting hung up on some minor thing. The deep breathing really works. I will sometimes combine that with walking to get a drink of water for a more physical involvement. |
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stochastic
Blue Jay
Joined: Jun 11, 2008
Posts: 85
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2008 7:11 pm Post subject: |
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Yes, big time.
Sometimes I have trouble sleeping because something keeps going over and over in my mind, a basic idea, or something that happened and it goes over and over like a broken record for 10 hours. |
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makuranososhi
Purple Monkey Dishwasher
Joined: May 13, 2008
Posts: 2256
Location: Arizona
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2008 7:33 pm Post subject: |
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Constantly. Nothing is ever resolved - only passed on until the next time it is brought to the surface again for review.
M.
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He thrusts his fists against the posts and still insists he sees the ghosts.
From my heart and from my hand, why don't people understand my intentions...?
Why choose a lesser evil? Vote Cthulhu 2008! |
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Mage
Phoenix
Joined: Oct 11, 2006
Posts: 839
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2008 8:14 pm Post subject: |
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| I know the word has more than one definition but I just can't get the picture out of my mind of every single one of you throwing up your food in your mouth and chewing it more. |
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makuranososhi
Purple Monkey Dishwasher
Joined: May 13, 2008
Posts: 2256
Location: Arizona
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| Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2008 8:59 pm Post subject: |
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| Mage wrote: | | I know the word has more than one definition but I just can't get the picture out of my mind of every single one of you throwing up your food in your mouth and chewing it more. |
*laugh* Nicely done, though that brings the word regurgitation into my mind as well... blech.
M.
_________________
He thrusts his fists against the posts and still insists he sees the ghosts.
From my heart and from my hand, why don't people understand my intentions...?
Why choose a lesser evil? Vote Cthulhu 2008! |
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kclark
Velociraptor
Joined: May 11, 2007
Age: 27
Posts: 460
Location: NE Illinois
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| Posted: Fri Jun 27, 2008 2:32 pm Post subject: |
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| Mage wrote: | | I know the word has more than one definition but I just can't get the picture out of my mind of every single one of you throwing up your food in your mouth and chewing it more. |
That is basically what it feels like, but it is thoughts in the mind rather than food in the mouth. And, yes ... I have done it before. Don't ask. |
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