Imagining bad things happening randomly - 'daymares'

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I've always had this ever since I can remember, and at first I thought that everyone else did too, but after asking my bf, I'm wondering if that's the case...

I call them "daymares", (like nightmares but during the day). They happen when I'm doing anything, so there's not a particular trigger.

For example, I can be walking over a bridge and I suddenly imagine a helicopter smashing into the bridge, I get thrown off into the road, bouncing off cars, then paramedics arrive and all I'm saying is call my boyfriend. All of that happens in less than 10 seconds, and when it happens, I don't stop, I carry on walking.

Tbh, it doesn't bother me as I know that it's not going to happen/it's not read, but I just wondered if anyone else experiences these? The 'daymares' don't always involve me, sometimes it's other people too.

For example, I was walking near my old house, waiting to cross the road and I imagined a guy getting out of his car, dragging a woman in, and then she was thrown out of the car into the road, bleeding and badly injured etc. Again, this doesn't last longer than 10 seconds.

It's always bad things though, never good things. I probably get them at least everyday, but the number per day differs.

I get these all the time. They're not always bad for me, though; sometimes they're good. I'd say the ratio of bad to good is about 3:1. They mostly don't bother me, either; although sometimes they make me sad, like if I picture a specific person being targeted and beaten, harassed, raped or killed. I try to wave those off as quickly as I can.

I just assumed it was common, but I really have no idea. My mom told me the other day that she often thinks about "crazy stuff" like random violence and such, but I'm not sure if that's the same thing. For one, I tend to actually visualize the things happening in real time as I'm walking down the street. She was talking about idle thoughts she has while at home, which I think are a different thing and probably more common.

I'm tempted to ask around, but I'm afraid that it might not be common and then people will become wary of me.

Interesting!

Yeah, I know what you mean about not asking other people. The only other person that I asked was my bf, and I know that he won't judge me, so I didn't mind asking him.

I wonder if it's common. I'm really curious now!

I also have this. I also imagine bad things happening to loved ones too. It's like worse case nightmare scenarios. I used to stay in my imagination as a kid but that resulted in me getting lost in dept. stores a lot. Very scary memories. It's like a dream state them bam! I'm in the cold panic of reality. I think that subconsciously I do this very often. If I'm thinking something ok or good for example I will then think of a disasterous thing to destroy any peace in my head and give my mind something to chew on.

I'd probably have daymares if thinking about something that's really happened weren't already horrifying enough.

I do this too, but not very often.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intrusive_thoughts

All the time. Worst is when I'm crossing the road. I get this shiver in my spine like a car could hit me so I have to get across the road as fast as I can. But I do have it in other scenarios, but always when crossing a road. It's not like I know anyone who has been hit by one either.. :S

Sometimes I have this. Often when I am laying in bed I keep thinking the world's going to suddenly come to an end, like having extreme weather that's really damaging to lives and buildings.

And sometimes when I'm on the bus and it's going round tight winding roads and having to go round parked cars on the sides of the roads before corners, I keep thinking a car coming the opposite way might be going way over the speed limit and crash right into the bus, causing death for everyone on the bus, or a lot of pain.

Or I worry that my house might suddenly go on fire, which is why I go round taking out all the plugs before I go to bed at night or go out during the day.

I have these and they are a symptom of ocd. Except they are called intrusive thoughts, like objects catching fire or exploding, cars careening off the road, planes falling out of the sky. They are horrible and put me on edge. Are we talking about the same thing here?

Daymares and intrusive thoughts?

I would think if there is any difference is that daymares have a longer duration.

I quite often get intrusive thought about incidents, which could easily have been terrible, but weren't. For example, just now, I keep going over what happened a couple of weeks ago. My daughter and I were on a train. At the train station next to ours, there was an announcement that the next stop would not be our station, but one further down the line. We were on the wrong train. I suddenly thought we need to get off this one and catch the next. So I ran to the door, with my daughter just behind me. We got off, just as the doors closed. I keep thinking, what if the doors had closed and my 7yr old daughter had been left on the train. When this thought comes into my mind, I might moan or take a sharp intake of breath or some muscles might tense, in a visibly noticeable way.

Most thoughts are worse than that one, like when my Mum closed her back door and my daughter's fingers appeared to be caught. She was screaming, but they weren't hurt at all, as the handle needs to be pushed upwards to close the door completely. I keep thinking that I might have actually crushed them, had I made a mistake and put the handle up, instead of down. I actually ran to the living room screaming and my husband opened the door to free her fingers This happened 5 1/2 years ago and I still get panicky about it.

All the time, They were worse when I was younger

I get something similar but for some reason I don't think they are real but make me happy most of the time. Not that I want bad to happen to real people it is just that they are entertaining to me with things like I think what happens if an earthquake were to happen or landslide. OR how different things could break but never really act on them. I think about things like runaway strollers but I think sometimes I am doing this on purpose because I enjoy it. A lot of the time they are voluntary.

I get these, They seem to happen more when I'm stressed.

Thank you for the replies. It's good to know that I am not alone. Do you think that NTs get this too?

Hmm, I'm not sure if they're intrusive thoughts though as I don't react to them, and don't have to do anything to get rid of them. For example, if I'm walking down the road and I get one, I often think "oh that was weird" but then just carry on as if nothing had happened. Occasionally, when they're related to someone I care about, like my bf, I get upset, but in general they don't bother me.

Also, it's worse when I'm hormonal as I get really emotional with anything then... For example, 2 days ago I was in the car on my way home and I suddenly imagined someone waiting down the alleyway next to my front door, in the dark so that I couldn't see them. They then came out as I was opening the door, pushed me hard to the floor, ran inside and shut the door.
I must admit, that time I became really paranoid, and my bf had to get out the car and check that no-one was there, but that's a rare occurance. I was hormonal then too, which is why I overreacted.

I don't know how common they are generally, but I do share your experience. I noticed while I was on city bus earlier today, I was looking at a tall building and I could see the windows exploding all the way up, and as I am visual-tactile, I could feel the percussion as well. Not a hallucination, nothing "unreal", just "boop" there and gone.

I get these a lot.. it's like an overlay to what is actually happening.. like i can see reality AND the daymare at the same time.. it's kinda like Final Destination o.O