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Thread: Small victories

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Nov 2018
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    Small victories

    Okay, this is going to sound ludicrous but bear with me, I'm feeling really proud of myself.

    One of my major freakouts is late periods, which is a bit of a problem now I'm in my forties and they're just starting to play tricks on me. The minute the allowable time window is passed (31.5 days, thank you, don't ask me how that figure was decided but now it's set in stone) I automatically assume that it won't show up at all, probably because the cancer's kicked in.

    Now, like my mother before me, I'm horrendously prone to magical thinking. Thus, if it's less than a week before my period I hate to buy pads because that will stop it showing up and I'll have cancer and spend the rest of my life with masked strangers staring up my privates. In the past, this has caused me some awkwardness when my stocks have run low and I've come on and either haven't had a pad in my bag, or I've only had the emergency pad that I keep in my bag.

    Monday, at 34 days, I was aware I only had 3 pads left and my husband was going into town. I knew I had to ask him to pick up some more, and I did, despite all the horrible scary feelings that I'd doomed myself.

    Yesterday, my period showed up and I had adequate resources not to have to worry about it because I insisted on listening to my rational brain.

    It's a tiny victory, but a victory nevertheless.
    __________________
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    Sometimes, it's better to light a flamethrower than curse the darkness. - Terry Pratchett

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jan 2019
    Posts
    288

    Re: Small victories

    Quote Originally Posted by BlueIris View Post
    Okay, this is going to sound ludicrous but bear with me, I'm feeling really proud of myself.

    One of my major freakouts is late periods, which is a bit of a problem now I'm in my forties and they're just starting to play tricks on me. The minute the allowable time window is passed (31.5 days, thank you, don't ask me how that figure was decided but now it's set in stone) I automatically assume that it won't show up at all, probably because the cancer's kicked in.

    Now, like my mother before me, I'm horrendously prone to magical thinking. Thus, if it's less than a week before my period I hate to buy pads because that will stop it showing up and I'll have cancer and spend the rest of my life with masked strangers staring up my privates. In the past, this has caused me some awkwardness when my stocks have run low and I've come on and either haven't had a pad in my bag, or I've only had the emergency pad that I keep in my bag.

    Monday, at 34 days, I was aware I only had 3 pads left and my husband was going into town. I knew I had to ask him to pick up some more, and I did, despite all the horrible scary feelings that I'd doomed myself.

    Yesterday, my period showed up and I had adequate resources not to have to worry about it because I insisted on listening to my rational brain.

    It's a tiny victory, but a victory nevertheless.
    It’s a good victory and I think as anxiety sufferers we all have similar thought processes. Mine is “if I’m happy it will go horribly wrong again”. Our brains are strange things but I think this is a big thing to do. Once your brain starts thinking like this it’s hard to break it x

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Nov 2018
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    7,786

    Re: Small victories

    Exactly, Unicorn. The feeling I'm fighting against is the one that if I act as though nothing's wrong, something awful will happen to trip me up.
    __________________
    ************************************************** ********
    Sometimes, it's better to light a flamethrower than curse the darkness. - Terry Pratchett

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jan 2019
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    288

    Re: Small victories

    It’s a thought process that becomes fact in your mind!

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Nov 2009
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    7,300

    Re: Small victories

    These 'magical thinking (a cross between paranoia/supersition and OCD)' things are hard to fight against sometimes, especially when their belief has been instilled by parents. I was brought up with supersitions galore and it took ages to break them all down to nothing..I systematically did all the things that were meant to bring bad luck one after the other LOL Good for you, for breaking one down.

  6. #6
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    Nov 2018
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    7,786

    Re: Small victories

    Thank you! It's so nice to be around people who realise things like this can be a big deal.

    Extra bonus: I told my husband last night and he got it, too
    __________________
    ************************************************** ********
    Sometimes, it's better to light a flamethrower than curse the darkness. - Terry Pratchett

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Nov 2009
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    7,300

    Re: Small victories

    Yeah, I get it, every 'one' you break down reduces your mental prison - and makes you freer.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Oct 2016
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    4,197

    Re: Small victories

    Ahh well done!
    I never really understood magical thinking until you just gave it context.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Nov 2018
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    7,786

    Re: Small victories

    It's horrible, Scass - this particular one has left me in an awkward position lots of times in the past.
    __________________
    ************************************************** ********
    Sometimes, it's better to light a flamethrower than curse the darkness. - Terry Pratchett

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Mar 2018
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    756

    Re: Small victories

    Congrats! Small victories all amount up over time xx

    I totally get what you get by magical thinking! It's horrid!

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